The Supreme Court on Thursday sentenced four men found guilty in the 1996 Lajpat Nagar blast case to imprisonment for life without remission, saying their actions were in furtherance of an international conspiracy to cause disruptive activities in India.
The court noted that the four convicts were “part of the plan for future blasts in the nation as well”.
A three-judge Bench of Justices B.R. Gavai, Vikram Nath and Sanjay Karol, in a 190-page judgment, observed that the delay caused in bringing justice to the victims, whether attributable to the judge or the prosecution, had “certainly compromised national interest”.
The explosion occurred in the busy Lajpat Nagar market in the capital. The blast took 13 lives and injured 38 people besides causing extensive damage to public and private property.
‘Rarest of rare’
Though terming the crime the “rarest of rare” and deserving of death penalty, Justice Karol, who wrote the judgment, said the decades of delay caused in litigation would act as a mitigating factor in favour of the four convicts — Mohd. Naushad, Mirza Nissar Hussain alias Naza, Mohd. Ali Bhatt alias Killey and Javed Ahmed Khan.
“The incident took place on May 21, 1996, ie, approximately 27 years ago. The trial court awarded the death sentence on April 22, 2010, ie, more than 13 years ago. The accused acted at the behest of the principal conspirators. All these are mitigating circumstances to not award the sentence of death even though the case falls within the category of rarest of rare,” the judgment noted.
The top court said even the trial was completed only after more than a decade on the prodding of the judiciary.
“Expeditious trial of such cases is the need of the hour, especially when it concerns national security and the common man. Regrettably, enough vigilance was not displayed by the investigating as well as the judicial authorities. A prominent market in the heart of the capital city is attacked and we may point out that it has not been dealt with the required degree of promptitude and attention,” Justice Karol observed.
The court noted that the delay may have been due to “the involvement of influential persons”. It said this was also “evident from the fact that out of several accused persons, only few have been put to trial”.
“In our considered view, the matter ought to have been handled with urgency and sensitivity at all levels,” the Supreme Court admonished.
