All the four accused are presently lodged in the Naini central jail here and had been charged with attempted murder and criminal conspiracy
Representational Picture
Fourteen years after a terror attack on Ayodhya by Jaish-e-Mohammad operatives, a special court here on Tuesday convicted four of the accused in the conspiracy behind the attack and sentenced them to life imprisonment. The court has also imposed a fine of Rs 40,000 each on the convicted persons - Asif Iqbal, Mohammed Shakeel, Irfan, and Mohammed Naseem.
ADVERTISEMENT
A special court in #Prayagraj on June 18 convicted four accused in the conspiracy behind the 2005 #Ayodhyaterrorattack case that had caused the death of two civilians and sentenced them to life imprisonment.
— IANS Tweets (@ians_india) June 18, 2019
Photo: IANS pic.twitter.com/9tNsgXPyay
Accused Mohammad Aziz has been acquitted due to lack of substantial evidence. All the accused are presently lodged in the Naini central jail here and had been charged with attempted murder and criminal conspiracy.
On July 5, 2005, a terrorist had carried out a suicide bombing attempt after breaching the security of the makeshift Ram temple. Five terrorists subsequently attempted to attack the "Sita Rasoi" and also blew up a jeep near the site.
All the five terrorists were later gunned down by Central Reserve Police Force personnel in an hour-long gunfight, while two civilians - Ramesh Pandey and Shanti Devi - were also killed in the cross-fire.
Five assault rifles, hand grenades, cartridges, five pistols, a rocket launcher, and jihadi documents were later recovered from the possession of the killed terrorists. Seven CRPF personnel were also injured in the exchange of fire, three of them seriously.
Delivering the verdict, special judge Dinesh Chand said that those involved in the conspiracy behind the 2005 attack were equally guilty as those who actually carried it out. The five accused had been arrested after mobile surveillance revealed their involvement in the terror attack.
Of them, Irfan, who hails from Uttar Pradesh's Saharanpur district, was arrested on July 22, 2005, while others, all residents of Poonch in Jammu and Kashmir, were arrested on July 28, 2005. The four accused had provided logistic and material support to the Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorists.
Top five news stories of the day
The Dutch mystery: Missing Mumbai man spied on, and hit, his wife
Neighbours of Sharmila Shinde, who died under mysterious circumstances in Amsterdam, reveal a dark side to her husband Avdhut, who is wanted by Dutch police; local police in Pune confirm she filed a complaint against him (Read full story)
Mumbai Crime: Drunken youth bangs car into cab, kills passenger in Goregaon
A 33-year-old Andheri West resident died on Sunday night when a car driven by a 19-year-old drunken boy banged into the cab he was travelling in near Virvani bus stop, Goregaon East, on the Western Express Highway. The impact of the collision was such that the passenger, identified as Shaileshkumar Pyarelal Mishra, got badly injured and started bleeding from his mouth and nose. On being informed, the Vanrai police reached the spot and rushed him to HBT Trauma Care Municipal Hospital in Jogeshwari, but he was declared dead even before being admitted. (Read full story)
Woman who accused Karan Oberoi of rape planned attack on self to strengthen case
The 35-year-old astrologer who accused actor Karan Oberoi of rape, was arrested on Monday by Oshiwara police, for staging an attack on herself. The police had earlier arrested her lawyer Ali Kaashif Khan. The astrologer was attacked by two bike borne men on May 25 when she was on her morning walk. (Read full story)
Mumbai: Man injured after iron scaffolding falls on him, dies in hospital
Rahul Saraf, who was badly injured when iron scaffolding near the GST office in Parel fell on him last Thursday, died on Sunday night. The family of Saraf, 35, Director of Maxgrow India Pvt Ltd, donated his organs and the last rites were performed on Monday. The Bhoiwada police have now added 304A (death due to negligence) section in the offence after Rahul's death. (Read full story)
After 13 deaths, Bandra's fatal U-bridge to be walled for safety
The U-bridge that connects Bandra East to West has been claiming more than three to four lives every year since 2015. As per the traffic department's statistics — accessed by mid-day — in four years, 14 lives have been lost on the stretch, while another 25 have been critically injured at this deadly turn. This year alone, three people died on the same spot. Fortunately, there were no casualties on the stretch in 2018, but from 2015 to 2017, 11 people were killed on the deadly bridge. (Read full story)
Catch up on all the latest Crime, National, International and Hatke news here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates
Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!
