2002 train fire: Indian court commutes death sentence

By Shuriah Niazi
NEW DELHI (AA) - An Indian court on Monday commuted the death penalty on 11 convicts to life term in the 2002 train burning case in the western Indian state of Gujarat.
A coach of the Sabarmati Express, in which 59 people were traveling, was burnt on February 2002 at the Godhra station. The burning triggered massive riots in Gujarat that killed almost 1,000 people, most of them were Muslims, according to official records.
A special investigative team was formed to investigate the incident and a special court convicted 31 people and acquitted 63 in 2011. The convicted were charged with murder, attempt to murder and criminal conspiracy.
11 of 31 convicts were given the death penalty, while the remaining got imprisonment for life.
A set of appeals were filed at the high court in the Gujarat state, challenging convictions and acquittals against the special court’s order.
The high court commuted the death penalty on convicts to lift term and directed the government and railways to pay a compensation of around $15,385 (Rs 1 million) to each family of those killed in the train burning case.