Case Note & Summary
On December 17, 2014, the High Court of Karnataka delivered a common judgment in Criminal RC No. 3/2008, Criminal Appeal No. 1203/2008, and Criminal Appeal No. 24/2009 arising from a bomb blast at St. Peter and Paul Church, JJ Nagar, Bangalore on July 9, 2000. The reference was for confirmation of the death sentence awarded to accused no. 10 Syed Mohammed Ibrahim, while the appeals challenged the convictions and sentences imposed by the 34th Additional City Civil & Sessions Judge and Presiding Officer, Special Court for the trial of Church Bomb Blast Cases, Bangalore, in SC No. 696/2005. The case involved charges under Section 120-B read with Sections 121-A, 124-A, and 153-A of the Indian Penal Code. The prosecution alleged that the accused were members of the Deendar Anjuman organization, founded by Hazrath Moulana Syed Siddique Kibla @ Siddique Deendar Channabasaveshwara, who had a hidden agenda to Islamize India. The background traced the organizational history, the founder's writings and activities, and a previous prosecution in Dharwad. The judgment also noted the founder's four wives and his death in 1952, and the leadership passing to his son Zia-Ul-Hassan, who allegedly received a prophecy in 1998 during a visit to Mecca and Madina. The text provided only the background and procedural history, not the final decision, legal issues, or the court's reasoning.
Issue of Consideration
Case Details
2014 LawText (KAR) (12) 13
Criminal RC No. 3 of 2008 c/w CRL.A No. 1203 of 2008 & CRL.A No. 24 of 2009
H N Nilogal (Special Public Prosecutor), Hashmath Pasha (for appellants)
In CRL.A 1203/2008: Syed Mohammed Ibrahim; In CRL.A 24/2009: Syed Hasanuzama @ Hasanuzama and others
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Nature of Litigation
Criminal reference for confirmation of death sentence and criminal appeals against conviction and sentence in a bomb blast case.
Remedy Sought
The State sought confirmation of the death sentence awarded to accused no. 10; the accused sought setting aside of their convictions and sentences.
Filing Reason
Appeals filed under Section 374(2) CrPC against the judgment of conviction and sentence dated 21/29-11-2008 in SC No. 696 of 2005; reference made under Section 366 CrPC for confirmation of death sentence.
Previous Decisions
The 34th Additional City Civil & Sessions Judge and Presiding Officer, Special Court for the trial of Church Bomb Blast Cases, Bangalore, convicted and sentenced the accused by judgment dated 21.11.2008 (conviction) and 29.11.2008 (sentence).
Judgment Excerpts
A series of bomb blasts at Churches situate at various places rocked the State of Karnataka in the year 2000 attempting to disturb the normal tranquility of the civilized society...
Siddique Deendar Channabasaveshwara professed that he was a believer of ‘Eka Devo Bhava and ‘Sarva Dharma’, respect for all religions...
Siddique Deendar Channabasaveshwara had four wives... He renamed them as Gowramma, Gangeshwari, Parvathi and Kalamma respectively.
During 1998 A-1 Zia-Ul-Hassan had been to Mecca and Madina, where he is said to have got the prophecy that India would bec
Procedural History
The Karnataka Government constituted a Special Court for trial of church bomb blast cases. The present matters arise from bomb blast at St. Peter and Paul Church, Bangalore, on 09.07.2000. The Special Court (34th Addl. City Civil & Sessions Judge, Bangalore) in SC No. 696/2005 convicted the accused on 21.11.2008 and sentenced them on 29.11.2008. Accused no. 10 Syed Mohammed Ibrahim was sentenced to death, prompting a reference under Section 366 CrPC for confirmation of the death sentence. Criminal Appeal No. 1203/2008 was filed by accused no. 10, and Criminal Appeal No. 24/2009 was filed by other accused against the conviction and sentence. The High Court of Karnataka heard all matters together and reserved judgment, ultimately delivering the common judgment on 17.12.2014.
Acts & Sections
- Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973: 366, 374(2), 235(2)
- Indian Penal Code: 120-B, 121-A, 124-A, 153-A
