NEW DELHI: Eleven years on, a Delhi court on Thursday acquitted two persons, accused in the 2005 Diwali-eve serial blasts case here which claimed 67 lives, saying the prosecution has failed to prove their guilt.
Additional Sessions Judge Reetesh Singh acquitted Mohd Rafiq Shah and Mohd Hussain Fazli of all the charges.
However, the judge held the third accused, Tariq Ahmed Dar, guilty of being a member of a terror outfit and giving support to it, though it let him off as well, saying he has already undergone imprisonment of more than 10 years, which is the maximum punishment prescribed under the law for these offences.
The serial blasts at three places — Sarojini Nagar, Paharganj and Kalkaji — on October 29, 2005, had killed 67 people and injured more than 225 other people.
Dar was convicted for the offence punishable under Section 38 (being the member of a terror organisation) and Section 39 (giving support to such outfit) of Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA).
Farooq Ahmed Batloo and Ghulam Ahmed Khan had earlier pleaded guilty and were let off by the court for the period already undergone by them. Terror funding was the charge against both of them.
Three separate cases were registered by Delhi Police’s Special Cell following the blasts. The court had clubbed all the three cases for the purpose of recording of evidence.
According to the prosecution, Dar, along with Abu Ozefa, Abu Al Kama, Rashid, Sazid Ali and Zahid, had allegedly entered into a criminal conspiracy to wage a war against the country and planned serial blasts.
All the five co-accused are still at large and are said to be in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
The prosecution said that Dar had allegedly hatched a conspiracy with the Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) militants to plan and carry out bomb blasts in the national capital.