BENGALURU: Noting that the accused too have contributed to the delay in the commencing the trial in the 2013 bomb blast near the BJP office at Malleswaram in Bengaluru, the special court declined to grant bail to Mohammed Salin, who is in judicial custody for the last 10 years.
The Accused No. 14, Salin (30) from Melapalyam in Tirunelveli of Tamil Nadu, has been charge-sheeted under the provisions of the IPC, Explosive Substances Act, Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, by the CCB. The public prosecutor said Salin is a member of the banned outfit Al-Umma. He is allegedly involved in many murders in TN and has killed more than 8 Hindu leaders in association with the other two accused, it added.
Judge Gangadhara C M said this case was pending before the 34th Additional City Civil and Sessions Court and it was transferred to the special court on May 6, 2021. “It is true that Salin was secured before this court on May 18, 2013, and he has been in judicial custody since then, as argued by his counsel. However, he cannot blame either the court or the prosecution for the delay in the conclusion of the trial. The order sheet reveals that the accused persons have also contributed more to the delay caused in the commencement of the trial,” the court said.
The court has already issued summons to the until witness No. 142. The special public prosecutor submitted that he is going to give up more than 100 witnesses up to 142 after perusing the records and will only examine the relevant witnesses to prove the case.
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The court noted that the examination of all the witnesses required some time as the accused persons held conspiracy meetings in Tamil Nadu and committed the blast in Karnataka. “This court has to secure the witnesses from Tamil Nadu. Most of the witnesses cited in the charge sheet do not know Kannada or English," it added. The court, therefore, has to appoint a translator.