The Supreme Court has scheduled a hearing on February 13 for a series of criminal appeals related to the 2002 Godhra train burning case.

A bench comprising Justices J.K. Maheshwari and Aravind Kumar expressed dissatisfaction over repeated adjournment requests by the parties. The bench stated that the hearing has already been postponed multiple times and listed the case as the top priority for the specified date.

Justice Maheshwari clarified that the issue of remission would be addressed by the appropriate government, irrespective of the ongoing appeals.

In February 2002, 59 individuals lost their lives when a coach of a train was set on fire in Godhra, Gujarat, leading to widespread riots in the state.

In 2011, a trial court convicted 31 individuals, sentencing 11 to death and 20 to life imprisonment. It also acquitted 63 others. Subsequently, in 2017, the Gujarat High Court upheld the convictions but commuted the death sentences to life imprisonment.

The convicts filed criminal appeals against their convictions, while the Gujarat government appealed the commutation of the death sentences.

In August 2023, the Supreme Court denied bail to three convicts, citing the roles attributed to them in stone pelting and robbery during the incident. Their bail pleas were dismissed without affecting the merits of their pending appeals.

Earlier, in April 2023, the Supreme Court granted bail to eight convicts while rejecting similar requests from four others.