The Communist Party of Inda today expressed its shock and dismay over the verdict of NIA court acquitting five accused, including principal accused Swami Aseemanand in the Mecca Masjid bomb blast in Hyderabad that killed eight persons and injured 58. The judge had clearly stated that “the prosecution could not prove its case” because “no evidence was presented to prove the conspiracy”.
In a statement here on Tuesday, CPI general secretary S Sudhakar Reddy stated that NIA had accused Aseemanand and others of conspiracy to target Muslim places of worship. The charge-sheet stated that between 2005 and 2007 all the accused planned to commit the acts, including the bomb blast at Mecca Masjid on May 18, 2007.
The NIA took over the case in April 2011 and filed a supplementary chargesheet on May 16, 2011. The second supplementary chargesheet was filed on July 16, 2012, and a third on August 28, 2013. On February 13, 2014, the NIA court framed charges against the accused and summons were issued to witnesses. The NIA relied heavily on the alleged confessional statement of Aseemanand.
The NIA stated Aseemanand was filled with remorse and desired to do “prayaschitha’’ and, therefore, made a confessional statement before a magistrate at the Tis Hazari courts in Delhi in which he “disclosed” the conspiracy and execution of bombing of different places including Mecca Masjid. However, Aseemanand subsequently retracted the statement, saying he was made to confess under duress. Of the 230 witnesses examined by the prosecution, 35 turned hostile. One of the main witnesses declared hostile was Lt Colonel Shrikant Purohit who was made a witness by NIA.
Besides, earlier the police had arrested several Muslim youth in the case, who were later acquitted by the court. No steps had been taken to rehabilitate these falsely accused Muslim youth. The party strongly felt feels that the NIA has acted as a tool of the RSS-BJP led NDA government at the Centre. Also one of the five acquitted has already been convicted in Ajmer Dargah case, which only confirms that the hollowness of the verdict. (NSS)