Year 2002 Ode riot case: Gujarat High Court acquits 3, upholds sentences to 19 others

Ahmedabad: A division bench of Justices Akil Kureshi and B N Karia of the Gujarat High Court today acquitted three in March 2002 Ode riot case in which 23 were burnt alive. The bench upheld the sentence given by a special trial court to 19 others in this case. The court also upheld the acquittal of 23 of the 47 accused.

In 2012, a special trial court had held 23 accused guilty and out of them, 18 were convicted for life imprisonment.The remaining five had been sentenced to seven years. The convicts had moved the High Court challenging the judgment. The SIT also moved the court, challenging the acquittals in the case and demanding enhancement of sentences of five convicts who got seven years in jail. The SIT has also sought capital punishment for all the accused found guilty of murder.