On Thursday, despite the strong opposition from the Gujarat government, the Supreme Court granted bail to the Godhra carnage convict, Farooq. Farooq’s appeal against his life imprisonment sentence was pending in the apex court since 2018. The bench comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justice PM Narsimha said that Farooq was in jail since 2004. He has been incarcerated for 17 years now, and hence he should be bailed out. The culprit was involved in stone pelting.
The Supreme Court will also hear the appeals of 17 other culprits after the holidays. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta represented the Gujarat government in the case. Mehta said that it was the intention of the stone pelters to make sure that no traveller could escape the burning bogey, and that no one could enter the bogey to save them either. He added that in normal circumstances, stone pelting can be a less serious offence, but this was different.
The Supreme Court, at this, said that some of the culprits were stone pelters and had spent long time periods in prison, in the wake of which, some could be bailed out. During the hearing, the Solicitor General was assured by the court that the role of each culprit will be checked, and it will be thought over whether some could be released on bail.
