Of the 10 members of the terror group, six are absconding while four have been arrested.
Almost a year after three bomb blasts shook the city killing 27 people and injuring many others, the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) on Friday filed a 4,788-page charge sheet before the special Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) court against 10 members of the Indian Mujahideen (IM), including its top operative Riyaz Bhatkal who is believed to be hiding in Pakistan.
Of the 10 members of the terror group, six are absconding while four have been arrested. The four — Naquee Ahmed, Nadeem Shaikh, Kanwar Pathrija and Haroon Naik — are facing trial under the stringent MCOCA, the Indian Penal Code and other laws.
A series of three coordinated bombs exploded at Opera House, Zaveri Bazaar and Dadar (West) in the peak evening hours between 6.52pm and 7.05pm on July 13, 2011. The charge sheet has been filed under MCOCA, Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, Indian Penal Code, Explosives Act, Explosives Substance Act, Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act and Passport Act against 10 persons of which four are arrested.
According to the charge sheet, Naquee and Nadeem were involved in the criminal conspiracy. The provided logistic support, SIM cards, housing, and transporting the explosives in addition to stealing scooters.
The charge sheet also reflects names of six absconding accused, including IM founder Mohammad Ahmed Sidappa alias Yasin Bhatkal and his brother Riyaz Bhatkal. Two Pakistani nationals, Wakash Shaikh alias Waka and Danish alias Adil alias Tabrez who were alleged to have planted the explosives, are also shown as wanted accused in the case. Two others are Muzaffar Kola Shaikh, proprietor of Dubai-based Kola Enterprise who used to send money through hawala and Mohammad Tahsin Akhtar alias Tahsin.
The ATS has recorded statements of 641 witnesses of which 19 witnesses have identified the arrested accused. The ATS has attached 308 hours of CDs compiled from various CCTV cameras at the three locations.
The recruitment for carrying out the blasts started in December 2010. From February 2011, people who were to execute the blasts started entering Mumbai. The confessional statement given by Nadeem Shaikh also forms a part of the charge sheet although he later retracted the statement. Initially, three different cases were lodged at local police stations under the UAPA. Later, the three blasts cases were clubbed and handed over to the ATS.
The ATS later invoked the MCOCA as the Bhatkal brothers’ were involved in Pune’s German bakery blast and Ahmedabad’s Shahi Baug blast. Yasin Bhatkal, Wakash and Tarbez had rented a flat in Byculla where they allegedly assembled explosives before triggering the blasts.
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