3 min readNew DelhiJul 21, 2026 02:15 PM IST
The Supreme Court Tuesday set aside the conviction and death sentence of Dr Abdul Hameed in the 1996 Samleti bus bomb blast case, citing a denial of adequate legal assistance during his original trial. The blast on May 22, 1996, killed 14 people and injured 39 others as it ripped through a Rajasthan Roadways bus travelling from Agra to Bikaner near Samleti village.
Overturning a July 2019 judgment of the Rajasthan High Court that had upheld Hameed’s conviction and capital sentence, a Supreme Court bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath, Sanjay Karol, and Sandeep Mehta ordered a fresh trial on the charges against him, directing that the proceedings be concluded within one year.
Highlighting that 30 years have passed since the attack, the Supreme Court asked the High Court to assign the retrial to a specialised fast-track court presided over by a judicial officer with at least seven years of experience in sessions trials.
Reading the operative portion of the judgement, the bench said, “All observations made in the judgement concerning Dr Abdul Hameed are confined to the issue of fairness of the trial and the legality of the proceedings culminating in his conviction. The special court shall independently appreciate the evidence that may be adduced before it and decide the matter strictly on its own merits without being influenced by any observation contained in this judgement.”
The bench clarified that its order is based on lack of fairness and procedural propriety and that it had not gone into the merits.
The Supreme Court also acquitted co-accused Pappu alias Salim and dismissed appeals filed by the state against the acquittal of two other accused, Javed Khan and Abdul Goni.
Twin blasts that shocked the nation
The Samleti blast occurred a day after the May 21, 1996, Lajpat Nagar bomb blast in Delhi, which left 13 people dead.
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The prosecution had sought a death sentence for Hameed, pointing out that he was also convicted in the January 26, 1996, Republic Day bomb blast at SMS Stadium in Jaipur. News reports had then said that the Jammu and Kashmir Islamic Front had taken responsibility for the blasts.
