Jaipur, May 1 (IANS) The Rajasthan High Court on Friday refused to grant relief to two convicts linked to the 2008 Jaipur serial blasts, dismissing their pleas for suspension of life sentence in the ‘live bomb’ case.

The applicants, Mohammad Sarwar Azmi and Shahbaz Ahmed, had approached the court seeking suspension of their life sentences pending appeal.

They said that they have already spent a long period in incarceration and that the appeal hearing is likely to take considerable time, warranting grant of bail.

A division bench of Justice Inderjeet Singh and Justice Bhuvan Goyal, however, rejected their applications on Friday.

According to case details, on May 13, 2008, eight serial blasts rocked Jaipur.

A ninth explosive device, which remained live, was recovered near a guest house in Jaipur’s Chandpole Bazar and was defused just minutes before it could detonate.

Meanwhile, a special court on April 4, 2025, convicted Mohammad Sarwar Azmi, Shahbaz Ahmed, Saifur Rahman, and Mohammad Saif, awarding them life imprisonment in the ‘live bomb’ case.

Earlier, in connection with the eight blasts, the accused had been sentenced to death by a trial court; however, the High Court later set aside those death sentences and acquitted them in those cases.

The defence argued that the prosecution relied on the same set of evidence in the ‘live bomb’ case as in the earlier blast cases where the accused were acquitted.

It was contended that once acquittal has been granted on identical facts, conviction in the present case is questionable.

The defence also emphasised prolonged incarceration and delay in disposal of the appeal as grounds for bail.

Opposing the plea, Additional Advocate General Rajesh Chaudhary said that the case involves grave charges of terrorism aimed at spreading fear.

He added that the accused had allegedly claimed responsibility for the blasts through an email.

The prosecution, he said, has presented additional evidence beyond what was examined in earlier cases.

The state also highlighted the severity of the incident, noting that the blasts claimed 71 lives and left 185 people injured.

Given the seriousness of the offence, the court was urged not to grant any relief.

The Rajasthan High Court, after hearing both sides, declined to suspend the life sentence, effectively denying bail to the convicts.

–IANS

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