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Court upholds conviction of minor in Delhi High Court blast

Since, no arguments or appeals were made with respect to period of sentencing, the minor will continue to serve the three years as mandated by the JJB. The minor will be released from the Special Home for Boys in July 2017.

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A sessions court here today upheld the conviction of the Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) convicting a minor involved in the 2011 Delhi High Court (DHC) blast case. On July 9, 2014, the JJB had convicted and sentenced to three years, the Juvenile in Conflict with the Law (JCL).

"The trial court was correct in holding him (JCL) guilty of the conspiracy,"Additional Sessions Judge Rakesh Pandit said.

The minor was convicted for offences under Section 120-B (criminal conspiracy) read with Sections 121 (waging war against the country), 121 A (conspiracy to commit waging war), 122 (collecting arms for waging war), 123 (concealing with intent to facilitate design to wage war), 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 325 (voluntarily causing grievous hurt), 436 (mischief by explosive substance), and 440 (mischief committed for causing death) of the Indian Penal Code and under various section of the Explosive Substances Act.

However, charges under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), were dropped against the minor. "As far as the offences u/sec. 20/38/39 of UAPA, 1967, are concerned, the same are not proved by the prosecution. Hence, the conviction of the JCL on these charges is not tenable. Hence, the JCL is acquitted of these charges," the court said.

Since, no arguments or appeals were made with respect to period of sentencing, the minor will continue to serve the three years as mandated by the JJB. The minor will be released from the Special Home for Boys in July 2017.

At least 15 people were killed and 79 injured on September 7, 2011, in an explosion outside Gate Number 5 of the Delhi High Court.

According to the submissions made by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), the minor - an aspiring, but poor (in skill) medical student, was greatly influenced by Afzal Guru and Ayman Al-Zawahiri, the Egyptian doctor and a close aide of Al Qaeda's Osama Bin Laden. According to the premier counter-terror agency, the minor or accused number 1, was against the capital punishment Guru was awarded for his role in the 2001 Parliament Attack in the national capital. The minor allegedly "took it upon himself to launch a sensational terrorist attack so that the hanging of Afzal Guru can be averted and his death sentenced was repealed."

The NIA states that, the minor then sent an email from Kishtwar, Jammu and Kashmir, to various media houses claiming responsibility for the DHC blast and further threatening to cause more blasts at other courts if Guru was hanged.

During the trial, the minor however defended his actions and stated that he was sending the email as a joke and did not know the severity of his actions.

The NIA in March 2012 filed a chargesheet against six accused, including Wasim Akram Malik, Amir Abbas Dev and a minor. Malik and Dev were arrested in September 2011.
Later, Dev turned approver in the case. 51 witnesses were deposed over the course of the trial after which the JJB convicted the minor.

The other accused in the case are Malik's brother and alleged Hizb-ul Mujahideen terrorist Junaid Akram Malik, Shakir Hussain Seikh alias Chhota Hafiz and Amir Kamal. Malik is on the run while other two were killed in a gun battle with security force.

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