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2002 Godhra train burning case: Gujarat government seeks death sentence for 11 convicts

The Gujarat government will press for the death sentence to 11 Godhra train burning case convicts in whose capital punishments were reduced to life terms by the state’s high court, the counsel for the BJP-led state government told the Supreme Court on Monday.

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The Gujarat government will press for the death sentence to 11 Godhra train burning case convicts in whose capital punishments were reduced to life terms by the state’s high court, the counsel for the BJP-led state government told the Supreme Court on Monday.

Appearing for the Gujarat government, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told a supreme court bench comprised of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices P S Narasimha and J B Pardiwala that the Bhupendrabhai Patel-led government will be “seriously pressing” for handing the death penalty to convicts whose sentences were commuted to life imprisonment.

Solicitor Mehta stressed that this is rarest of rare case where 59 people, including women and children, were burnt alive and it’s been proved consistently that the bogey was locked from the outside so the victims could not escape.

He said that 11 convicts were sentenced to death by the trial court and 20 others were granted life terms in the case with the Gujarat High Court upholding 31 convictions and commuting the capital punishments of 11 convicts to a life sentence.

Mehta said that the Gujarat government has come with an appeal challenging the commuting of the death penalty of the said convicts while several accused have filed pleas against the high court upholding their convictions in the case.

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Two convicts have been granted bail by the apex court so far while seven other bail pleas are pending adjudication.

The Supreme Court bench noted that a large number of bail pleas have been filed before the top court in the case and directed the advocates of the applicants and Gujarat standing counsel, Advocate Swati Ghildiyal to prepare a comprehensive chart with all relevant details. The matter is scheduled for listing after three weeks.

The apex court had on January 30, sought the Gujarat government’s response on the bail pleas of convicts Abdul Raheman Dhantia alias Kankatto, Abdul Sattar Ibrahim Gaddi Asla and others. All of them are serving life term in the case.

In its response, the Gujarat government said it wasn’t merely a case of stone pelting as the convicts had bolted a bogey of the Sabarmati Express and set it ablaze, leading to the death of several passengers on the train.

At least 59 people were killed when a coach of the Sabarmati Express was torched in Gujarat’s Godhra on February 27, 2002. The incident had trigged the infamous Godhra communal riots.

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What is SACHET, the app PM Modi mentioned in Mann Ki Baat?

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During his Mann Ki Baat broadcast on Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighted the Sachet app, an innovative alert system developed by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).

Rolled out across India, Sachet harnesses geo-intelligence to provide near-instantaneous disaster warnings through diverse channels like SMS, web browser notifications, and RSS feeds.

The app’s website advises users to stay alert for SMS alerts marked with the “XX-NDMAEW” header. Beyond disaster alerts, Sachet offers weather updates and allows users to track multiple locations, delivering notifications directly to desktops or laptops. Subscribed entities, such as news outlets, can access alerts via RSS feeds to amplify public warnings.

The app has gained significant traction, with roughly 5.4 crore downloads in Uttar Pradesh, 4.6 crore in Delhi, and 1.1 crore in Maharashtra, underscoring its vital role in bolstering disaster readiness.

Modi praised Sachet as a testament to India’s use of technology to empower citizens, ensuring timely information to mitigate risks during emergencies.

The Prime Minister also addressed the tragic Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir on April 22, which claimed 26 lives, predominantly tourists, in the tranquil Baisaran valley.

The investigation has been handed over to the National Investigation Agency (NIA), with the Ministry of Home Affairs urging a swift probe into one of the region’s most lethal civilian attacks in nearly two decades.

The NIA, in a press release, outlined its approach: “Under the supervision of senior officers, including an Inspector General, Deputy Inspector General, and Superintendent of Police, our teams are meticulously interviewing eyewitnesses to piece together the chilling sequence of events.”

The agency is delving into granular details to identify the culprits, linked to The Resistance Front, an affiliate of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba. As the NIA intensifies its efforts, the focus remains on securing justice and fortifying security, especially with the Amarnath Yatra scheduled to commence on July 3, a time when Kashmir expects a surge in visitors.

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NIA takes over Pahalgam terror attack case from J&K Police

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The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has assumed control of the investigation into the devastating Pahalgam terror attack, taking over from the Jammu and Kashmir Police to probe the April 22, 2025, assault that killed 26 tourists, including one Nepali citizen, and injured over three dozen others.

The agency registered a fresh First Information Report (FIR) late Saturday, April 26, following directives from the Ministry of Home Affairs’ Counter Terrorism and Counter Radicalisation (CTCR) division, prompted by the attack’s severity and the involvement of The Resistance Front (TRF), a proxy of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), which claimed responsibility.

Five days after the attack and four days after an NIA team, led by a Deputy Inspector General, visited the Baisaran meadow attack site near Pahalgam, the agency formally launched its probe. The team had initially supported local police in investigating what is considered the deadliest civilian attack in Jammu and Kashmir in nearly two decades.

The NIA is now tasked with conducting a comprehensive assessment, collecting forensic evidence, and identifying the perpetrators of the 2 p.m. massacre, which shattered the tranquility of a popular tourist destination. Helicopters were deployed to evacuate the wounded, underscoring the scale of the tragedy.

The attack coincides with a surge in tourist arrivals to Kashmir, raising concerns ahead of the 38-day Amarnath Yatra, set to begin on July 3. Against this backdrop, intelligence agencies have compiled a list of 14 local terrorists, aged 20 to 40, actively supporting Pakistan-based operatives with logistics and ground operations.

These individuals, affiliated with Hizbul Mujahideen, LeT, and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), include Adil Rehman Dentoo (LeT’s Sopore commander since 2021), Asif Ahmed Sheikh (JeM’s Awantipora commander since 2022), Ahsan Ahmed Sheikh (LeT, Pulwama, since 2023), Haris Nazir (LeT, Pulwama, since 2023), Aamir Nazir Wani (JeM, Pulwama, since 2024), Yawar Ahmed Bhat (JeM, Pulwama, since 2024), Asif Ahmed Khanday (Hizbul Mujahideen, Shopian, since 2015), Naseer Ahmed Wani (LeT, Shopian, since 2019), Shahid Ahmed Kutay (LeT/TRF, Shopian, since 2023), Aamir Ahmed Dar (LeT, Shopian, since 2023), Adnan Safi Dar (LeT/TRF, Shopian, since 2024), Zubair Ahmed Wani (Hizbul Mujahideen’s Anantnag commander since 2018), Haroon Rashid Ganai (Hizbul Mujahideen, Anantnag, trained in PoK in 2018), and Zakir Ahmed Ganie (LeT, Kulgam).

Security forces have intensified operations in South Kashmir, particularly Anantnag and Pulwama, targeting these operatives to disrupt terror networks. The NIA is also exploring links between these 14 individuals and five terrorists involved in the Pahalgam attack, including three Pakistani nationals—Asif Fauji, Suleman Shah, and Abu Talha—whose sketches were released earlier, and two local operatives, Adil Guri and Ahsan, with a ₹20 lakh bounty on each.

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Terrorists shoot dead social activist Ghulam Rasool in J&K’s Kupwara

His words underscore a growing international consensus on the need for collective action to address the scourge of militancy, particularly as India-Pakistan tensions flare.

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In a grim reminder of the region’s fragile security, suspected terrorists shot dead 45-year-old social activist Ghulam Rasool Magray in his home in Kandi Khas, Kupwara district, late Saturday night.

According to officials, the assailants fired at Magray inside his residence, and despite being rushed to a hospital, he was declared dead on arrival. The motive behind targeting the activist remains unclear, deepening the unease in a region still reeling from the recent Pahalgam terror attack.

Authorities have launched an investigation to uncover the circumstances and perpetrators of this brazen killing.

The murder follows the devastating Pahalgam attack on April 22, which claimed 26 lives, mostly tourists, and was attributed to The Resistance Front, a front for the banned Lashkar-e-Taiba. In response, security forces have escalated their crackdown on the terror ecosystem. On Saturday night, officials demolished the homes of three active terrorists across Jammu and Kashmir, signaling zero tolerance for militancy. In Shopian’s Wandina, the residence of Adnan Shafi, who joined terrorist ranks in 2024, was razed. In Pulwama, the house of Amir Nazir met a similar fate, while in Bandipora, the home of Jameel Ahmad Shergojri, a Lashkar-e-Taiba operative since 2016, was reduced to rubble. These actions reflect the government’s resolve to dismantle terror networks in the wake of escalating violence.

The Pahalgam attack has reverberated beyond India’s borders, drawing condemnation from Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian during a phone call with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday, April 26. In a statement shared on X by Iran’s embassy in New Delhi, Pezeshkian labeled the attack “inhumane” and called for regional solidarity to combat terrorism. “Such tragedies compel nations to unite in empathy and cooperation to uproot terrorism and secure lasting peace,” he said. His words underscore a growing international consensus on the need for collective action to address the scourge of militancy, particularly as India-Pakistan tensions flare.

The killing of Magray comes amid heightened India-Pakistan friction, with New Delhi suspending the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty and Islamabad retaliating by closing its airspace to Indian airlines and threatening to suspend bilateral agreements. Cross-border skirmishes along the Line of Control have intensified, with the Indian Army reporting exchanges of fire for two consecutive nights

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