The 2008 Ahmedabad bombings were a series of 21 bomb blasts that hit Ahmedabad, India, on 26 July 2008, within a span of 70 minutes. Fifty-six people were killed and over 200 people were injured.
A special court in Gujarat on Friday pronounced the death sentence to 38 out of 49 convicts and 11 to life imprisonment. These blasts were carried out by people associated with the terrorist organization Indian Mujahideen (IM) and the banned Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI). Several TV channels said they had received an e-mail from a terror outfit called Indian Mujahideen claiming responsibility for the terror attacks; Islamic militant group Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami, however, has claimed responsibility for the attacks.
These bombings occurred a day after the Bangalore blasts in the Indian state of Karnataka. After the blast, the Surat Police of Gujarat recovered 29 bombs from different areas of the city between 28 July and 31 July 2008, 17 of them in Varachha area and others in Katargam, Mahidharpura and Umra areas.
The trial began in December 2009, was conducted against 78 people. During the trial of the case, the prosecution examined 1100 witnesses. The bombs were planted in Tiffin carriers on bicycles, markets, hospitals, and other crowded areas. This is the biggest punishment ever in the history of India when 38 out of 49 convicts were sentenced to death on terrorism charges simultaneously.