Court slams Special Cell of Delhi police for shoddy investigation * 2 main accused acquitted of all charges
Even over 11 years after the deadly 2005 blasts claimed over 60 lives and injured over 200 people in Delhi, there is no relief for the families of the victims who lost their loved ones, a day before Diwali. A Delhi court slammed the prosecution for the shoddy investigation, saying it "failed miserably" in proving the charges.
The court found nothing to prove that the three accused – Mohammed Hussain Fazili, Rafiq Shah and Tariq Ahmed Dar – either planted the bombs or hatched a terror conspiracy.
While Shah, an MA student in Kashmir University, and Fazili were acquitted of all charges, Dar, the alleged mastermind, was convicted to 10-year imprisonment under Sections 38 and 39 of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) for supporting a terror outfit. Dar too could walk out of jail as he has already spent 11 years in prison.
"The prosecution has not been able to prove any link between Fazili, Shah and Dar," the 140-page judgment said.
The Special Cell of Delhi police filed a charge sheet against the three in 2008, saying that all three planted bombs in Sarojini Nagar, Paharganj and a bus in Kalkaji.
The Special Cell, considered an elite anti-terror investigating unit, has been accused of bungling terror probes and frame-up in the past. While the unit boasts of several successful operations, they have been pulled up by courts in the past, too, in terror cases that have resulted in acquittals.
The court ruled that the police could not prove any charges against Dar under various sections of IPC, including Section 4 of the Explosive Substance Act.
"In the absence of any evidence regarding Dar being involved in the conspiracy behind the blasts, none of the charges framed against him are made out," said the order.
Slamming the police, the court said that the prosecution has "miserably failed" to prove that Shah was involved in placing the bomb in the DTC bus.
The court found that Sheikh Jameel Ali, Assistant Professor of Kashmir University, had deposed in the court and said that Shah was attending classes on the day of the blast. The court said that the prosecution had failed to prove any link between the Fazili and Shah on the one hand and Dar on the other.
"The contents of these conversations fall short in enabling this court to definitely conclude that Dar was part of the conspiracy," Additional Sessions Judge Reetesh Singh said.
Two other accused – Ghulam Ahmad Khan and Farooque Ahmed Batloo – were found guilty under Sections 17 and 18 of UAPA.
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