Not just Gandhi vs Godse, the Delhi HC’s e-Museum brings you details of these landmark cases

The Delhi High Court website makes access to history possible in just a few clicks. In this age of misinformation, you can now read and listen to the trial proceedings, arguments and verdicts of landmark cases in Indian history in the e-Museum section of the Delhi High Court website. The files attached to the website contain the entire trial and appeal report and offer valuable insights into the circumstances of the cases that shook the nation.

From the Mahatma Gandhi assassination case to the terrorist attack on the Red Fort in 2000, the museum has not only provided case reports but also detailed court proceedings and verdicts of the cases that shook the nation. You can not only read the case reports but also listen to them in audio format.

Here is a brief overview of some of the landmark cases listed on the Delhi High Court website:

1) The attack on the Red Fort in 2000

On December 12, 2000, unidentified terrorists of Lashkar-e-Toiba entered the Red Fort and shot dead three soldiers of the 7 Rajputana Rifles. During investigation, it was found that the terrorists were assisted by 22 people. On October 12, 2005, the court convicted 7 of the 11 accused and awarded death penalty to one of the main accused. The high court in 2007 upheld the conviction of the main accused but acquitted the others. The case then went to the Supreme Court. The entire record of the case is available on the website.

2) The case of the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi

On 30 January 1948, Mahatma Gandhi was gunned down by Nathuram V. Godse at Birla House, New Delhi at around 5 p.m. Following investigation, the State produced eight accused, namely Sh. Nathuram V. Godse, Sh. Narayan D. Apte, Sh. Vishnu R. Karkare, Sh. Madanlal K. Pahwa, Sh. Shankar Kistayya, Sh. Gopal V. Godse, Sh. Vinayak D. Savarkar and Sh. Dattataraya S. Parchure, before the court of Sh. Atma Charan Esq., ICS, Special Judge, held at the Red Fort, Delhi.

After the trial was concluded, the court of Sh. Atma Charan Esq., ICS, Special Judge, convicted seven of the eight accused for various offences punishable under the Indian Penal Code, 1860 and the Explosive Substances Act, 1908. The original record of the entire trial is available on the website

3) The Indira Gandhi assassination case

As a result of Operation Blue Star, Indira Gandhi, the first and only woman Prime Minister of India, was assassinated on 31 October 1984 at her residence at 1, Safdarjung Road in New Delhi by her two Sikh bodyguards, Sub-Inspector Beant Singh and Ct. Satwant Singh.

“While Sub-Inspector Beant Singh was killed on the spot by security forces, Ct. Satwant Singh along with his alleged accomplices Sh. Balbir Singh and Sh. Kehar Singh were charged by the court of Sh. Mahesh Chandra, Judge, Additional Sessions Court, Delhi, with, among other charges, the planned assassination of Mrs. Indira Gandhi. During the trial, which took place in Tihar Central Jail and was covered by a number of national and international press agencies…”

In a judgment dated 22 January 1986, Mahesh Chandra, Extraordinary Judge of Delhi, found all three accused guilty, among other things, of having planned the assassination of Mrs. Indira Gandhi, and the accused Ct. Satwant Singh guilty of having carried out the assassination together with Sub-Inspector Beant Singh.

“The attached file contains the entire report of the trial held before the court of Sh. Mahesh Chandra, Extraordinary Judge of Delhi and provides valuable insights into the circumstances under which the said trial was held. The Supreme Court judgment in the final appeal is available on the website,” the website said.

4) Uphaar cinema case

On June 13, 1997, during the screening of the film Border, a fire broke out in a transformer in the basement of Uphaar Cinema in Green Park, Delhi. 59 people died and over 100 were injured.

During the investigation into the cause of the fire, it was found that the fatal incident was due to the combined criminal acts/omissions of the owners of Uphaar Cinema, officials of Uphaar Cinema, officials of Delhi Vidyut Board, officials of Municipal Corporation of Delhi and officials of Delhi Fire Service.

The e-Museum has files containing the complete transcripts of the trial and appeal, which provide valuable insights into the quest for justice by the Association of Victims of Uphaar Tragedy (AVUT) under the leadership of Ms. Neelam Krishnamurthy, the mother of the victims, as well as Ms. Unnati and Mr. Ujjwal.

5) BMW hit and run case

In the early morning of January 10, 1999, a BMW hit seven people on Lodhi Road in Delhi. Six of the seven people died in the accident.

Relying on the version given by eyewitnesses and the lone survivor of the accident, among others, the State had charged the main accused Sanjiv Nanda and his accomplices with, inter alia, committing offences punishable under Section 304 (Intentional killing not amounting to murder), Section 304A (Involuntary killing) and Section 308 (Attempt to cause wilful killing) of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (IPC, 1860).

6) Jessica Lal murder case

On the night of April 29-30, 1999, 34-year-old model Jessica Lal was shot dead in Tamarind Court, a famous restaurant in New Delhi.

During investigation, it emerged that she had been shot dead by the main accused Sidharth Vashist (Manu Sharma), the son of a rich and influential politician from Haryana, because she refused to serve him alcohol because the bar was closed. After the trial, the court of Sh. SL Bhayana, an additional judge in New Delhi, acquitted all the accused in a verdict dated 21.02.2006.

The verdict sparked outrage in the media and caused a great stir among the public. The Delhi High Court heard the appeal expeditiously and by a judgment dated 18.12.2006, delivered by Justice RS Sodhi and Justice PK Bhasin, convicted the main accused Manu Sharma of the murder of Ms Jessica Lal and some other accused of helping him in destroying the evidence of the case.