An Indian court on Tuesday convicted 31 people on conspiracy and murder charges over a deadly train fire in 2002 that triggered anti-Muslim rioting in which 2,000 people were killed. The unrest, some of the worst religious violence in India since independence, was sparked after 59 Hindu pilgrims perished in the train fire at Godhra station in Gujarat.
Hindus in the state blamed the blaze on Muslim protesters at the station, and furious mobs seeking revenge rampaged through Muslim neighbourhoods in several cities during three days of bloodshed. Special public prosecutor J.M. Panchal told reporters: "31 people have been convicted under conspiracy and murder charges, 63 others have been acquitted."
A total of 94 people, all Muslims, stood trial at a court in Ahmedabad where they had been detained since 2002 accused of causing the train blaze. Responsibility for the fire has been the subject of fierce dispute between India's Hindu and Muslim communities, and Tuesday's convictions supported Hindu claims that it was a planned attack. Previously one national inquiry concluded the fire was an accident, though other official investigations contradicted that finding.
"The court has accepted the conspiracy theory. It was not an accident," Panchal said, adding sentences would be handed down on Friday. Extra police were on duty across Gujarat to prevent any outbreak of communal violence in the wake of the verdicts, which came after the trial concluded in September.
Comments
Comments are closed for this article.