Karnataka HC acquits three men in 2012 Bengaluru terror conspiracy case
Bengaluru (PTI): The Karnataka High Court has acquitted three people, including a Pakistani national, from charges under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) related to a 2012 terror conspiracy allegedly plotted inside Bengaluru Central Prison.
The court found a procedural flaw in the prosecution sanction granted by the state government, leading to the acquittals.
The accused – Syed Abdul Rehman from Bengaluru, Afsar Pasha alias Khushiruddin from Chintamani in Kolar district and Mohammed Fahad Khoya from Karachi, Pakistan – were charged under various provisions of the UAPA and the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
However, while acquitting them of these charges, the court upheld Rehman’s conviction under the Arms Act, 1959, and the Explosive Substances Act, 1908.
Rehman was found guilty of illegal possession of a revolver and concealing explosives, leading to a revised sentence of 10 years' imprisonment.
A division bench, consisting of Justice Sreenivas Harish Kumar and Justice J M Khazi, allowed the petitions filed by Pasha and Khoya challenging their 2023 conviction and life imprisonment sentence.
However, the bench only modified Rehman’s conviction under the lesser offenses of the Arms Act and Explosive Substances Act.
The court found that the sanction for prosecution was flawed. The Principal Secretary to the Home Department at the time, Raghavendra H Auradkar, admitted during cross-examination that he could not recall whether an independent review committee was involved when he granted the sanction.
The court noted that under Section 45(2) of the UAPA, it is mandatory to consider the review committee’s report before granting sanction.
As the trial court overlooked this procedural lapse, the High Court concluded that the sanction order was invalid, thereby vitiating the charges under the UAPA.
The court also noted the absence of independent evidence to substantiate the charges of criminal conspiracy to recruit youth for Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and conduct attacks in Bengaluru, allegedly planned during the accused’s imprisonment.
The charges largely relied on confessions from the accused, which the court deemed insufficient for conviction.
The bench concluded that there was no proof linking Rehman to any activities directed by the other accused during their time in prison.
Consequently, Pasha and Khoya were ordered to be released unless they are implicated in other cases, with the latter slated for deportation to Pakistan.
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'New drama': BJP on AAP sharing pics of Delhi CM Atishi working amid 'empty' cartons
New Delhi, Oct 10: After the AAP shared images on Thursday showing Delhi Chief Minister Atishi signing files at her Kalkaji residence surrounded by cartons, BJP leaders accused the Arvind Kejriwal-led party of indulging in "drama" and playing the "victim card" over the Flagstaff Road bungalow row to gain sympathy.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) shared the images on X a day after claiming that Atishi was made to "forcibly vacate" the 6, Flagstaff Road bungalow in the national capital "meant for chief ministers".
Contrary to what the AAP is trying to project, the 6, Flagstaff Road bungalow is not the official residence of the Delhi chief minister, said Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva.
"It is like other government bungalows where Arvind Kejriwal lived as the chief minister," Sachdeva said as he challenged the AAP government to prove that the 6, Flagstaff Road bungalow in the Civil Lines area was "earmarked" as the official residence of the chief minister.
"We have no objections if Atishi wants to live there. But it must be done in accordance with the rules," Sachdeva said.
Accusing Atishi of playing the "victim card", Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly Vijender Gupta said, "The photos of Atishi working amid empty boxes is the Aam Aadmi Party's new drama."
Gupta, who on Thursday visited the AB-17 bungalow on Mathura Road, allotted to Atishi last year after she became a minister, said, "She has a bungalow allotted in her name on Mathura Road that was earlier used by Sheila Dikshit for 10 years when she was the chief minister of Delhi."
"Also, Aitishi can work from her office at the Delhi Secretariat, but she is only making a futile attempt to play the victim card by posing with empty boxes," Gupta alleged.
The AAP has accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of trying to "usurp" the "chief minister's bungalow" despite not being in power in Delhi for 27 years.
The BJP earlier ran a campaign against Kejriwal alleging corruption in the reconstruction of the 6, Flagstaff Road bungalow when he was the chief minister, coining the term "sheesh mahal" while citing the "pricey" interiors and fixtures in the house.
Sachdeva alleged that since Kejriwal does not want the "corruption of sheesh mahal" to get exposed, the AAP is "desperate" to take possession of the Flagstaff Road bungalow.
ये होता है जनता के लिए काम करने का जज़्बा 👏💯
— AAP (@AamAadmiParty) October 10, 2024
BJP के LG दिल्ली की महिला मुख्यमंत्री @AtishiAAP जी का आवास छीनकर CM House से उनका सामान तो बाहर फिकवा सकते हैं लेकिन जनता की सेवा और काम करने के जज्बे को नहीं छीन सकते।
आम आदमी पार्टी की सरकार तमाम बाधाओं और मुश्किलों से लड़ते हुए… pic.twitter.com/ZQ1lUgyD0a
