Gulberg society massacre: Sentence on Friday, murder convict surrenders in court after 14 years

The 11 were found guilty of murder, unlawful assembly, loot and arson among other offences, while 12 were convicted for unlawful assembly, arson and loot. One accused was convicted for attempt to murder, unlawful assembly and other charges.

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Meanwhile, Kailash Dhobi, convicted for murder, showed up in the court after he jumped parole in January. He was sent to Sabarmati Central Jail.

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Dhobi was accused number 1, held for killing at least six people during the riots. He was in jail since 2002 till he was granted relief in December. The court had recently asked authorities to arrest him as early as possible.

The prosecution, the Supreme Court appointed-SIT, has sought death sentence or life in jail till death for all the convicts, arguing they all have been held guilty for unlawful assembly, which meant that they had a common objective — to kill people from the minority community.

On the other hand, the victims’ lawyer did not seek death for any of the convicts, but argued that they be given harshest punishment like life imprisonment till death. The victims’ lawyer also demanded that all convicts be punished for the major offence.

However, the defence lawyers opposed these submissions on the ground that the court did not believe the allegation of conspiracy, and therefore, the punishment should be given for individual acts.