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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BJP stages walkout in Karnataka assembly over 'non-disbursal' of Gruha Lakshmi payout
Belagavi (Karnataka) (PTI): The opposition BJP on Wednesday staged a walkout from the Karnataka assembly protesting the alleged "non-disbursal" of two months' installments to 1.26 crore beneficiaries under a woman's assistance scheme of the state government.
The protest followed a heated debate in which the opposition accused the state government of providing "misleading" information regarding the payment status of the flagship Gruha Lakshmi scheme.
The saffron party members trooped into the well of the House and raised slogans, leading to the adjournment of the proceedings of the House for over an hour.
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The Gruha Lakshmi guarantee scheme is one of the five pre-poll promises of the ruling Congress. It provides Rs 2,000 monthly to women heads of the Below Poverty Line (BPL) families.
The BJP legislators accused Woman and Child Welfare Minister Laxmi Hebbalkar of having "misled" the House by giving false information to BJP MLA Mahesh Tenginkai that all the instalments till August have been paid under the scheme.
The opposition charged that the installments for the months of February and March this year were not paid.
The BJP MLAs' grouse was that they had been demanding an explanation from the Minister for the past three days, but she never turned up to provide information.
As soon as the session started, the opposition members trooped into the well of the House demanding the Minister's presence, which led to the adjournment.
When the members assembled again, the Minister replied that this is a unique flagship programme of the Congress government, which is a model for all the states.
Hebbalkar said she always strived to ensure that this scheme is implemented religiously.
"However, when I checked, I noticed that two months' installments were not paid to the beneficiaries through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT). If my reply has hurt anyone, then I express my regret," she said.
Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, who came to the defence of Hebbalkar, said the BJP should apologise for the lie in the Union Budget.
"Despite the Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announcing Rs 5,300 crore for the Upper Bhadra Irrigation Project in the budget, the money was not given to Karnataka. You should question that as well," Shivakumar underlined.
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To this, Leader of Opposition in the assembly R Ashoka said the matter was raised because not only were the BJP members hurt but also the 1.26 crore beneficiaries who were eagerly waiting for the money.
Demanding that the lie be expunged from the House records, he insisted on a date for when the backlog will be paid to the beneficiaries.
The Minister said she was apologising for giving a wrong reply, but she was peeved at the way a woman was targeted in the House.
Objecting to this statement, BJP MLA S Suresh Kumar asked her to refrain from playing victim card and bring up the issue of gender, caste and religious discrimination as it was a matter related to 1.26 crore people.
Ashoka and the BJP MLAs then staged a walkout, saying the Minister's reply was not satisfactory.
