Flashback 2015: Closure in the Mumbai train blasts case

New Delhi, Dec 17: At 6.24 and 6.35 PM on July 11 2006, Mumbai witnessed a horror that everyone would want to forget about. Seven blasts ripped through the trains at Mumbai and before anyone could realise the horror of 11 minutes had claimed the lives of 189 persons and left over 800 injured.

The heart of the city had been attacked and as people came to terms, the Maharashtra ATS had a tough task ahead. After a tedious investigation which was also facilitated by an approver in the case, a chargesheet was drawn up and the case put to trial.

It took nine years for a trial court in Mumbai to finally deliver the verdict and in the month of September 2015, justice was done and the families of every victim got the much needed closure.

Judgment day:
A lot of people had lost hope in the judicial system watching the case drag on and on. The trial had come to a halt for a long time with some of the accused persons moving the higher courts questioning the provisions of law where the trial was concerned. Finally almost a year back after the Supreme Court cleared the decks, the trial went on in full swing.

After hearing arguments at length, the trial court finally convicted 12 persons. While delivering the quantum of sentence, the trial court sentenced five persons to death the remaining were awarded a lifer. Justice was done and although it did take time, most family members of the victims claimed that they had finally attained closure.

However this is just the start of the judicial process. There are several more rounds of appeal that remain before the case attains a complete closure. The death sentences will have to be confirmed by High Court and then the matter would go up before the Supreme Court of India.

If the Supreme Court upholds the death penalty then there is an option that the convicts would have to seek a pardon before the President of India.

Legal experts would say that it would easily be at least another three to four years before this case attains complete closure. However what is important as of now is that the first round of this tedious judicial process has been completed.

OneIndia News