KOCHI: The Kerala High Court on Monday confirmed the conviction and life imprisonment awarded to Thadiyantavida Nazeer and nine others who are accused in the Kashmir terror recruitment case of 2006 in which youths were recruited and given arms training to wage war against India.
However, the court acquitted three persons in the case -- the second accused MH Faisal, 14th accused Muhammed Nawas, and the 22nd accused Ummer Faruq.
A Division Bench comprising Justice K Vinod Chandran and Justice C Jayachandran issued the order on the appeal filed by Shafas Shamsuddin, Abdul Jaleel, Firoz, Sabir P Buhari, P Mujeeb, Sarfaraz Navas, and other accused persons challenging the sentence awarded by the NIA Special Court, Ernakulam in October 2013.
The NIA also filed an appeal against the order of the NIA court deleting sedition offence and other offenses charged against some of the accused. In the trial court, as many as 13 persons were convicted and five acquitted in the case.
The NIA's charge sheet said that the accused, including five youths - Fayas, Fayis, Abdul Rahim, Muhammed Yasin (All Malayalis) - and Abdul Jabbar under the leadership of Sarfaraz Nawaz, Thadiyantavida Nazeer, and Pakistan national Abdul Rehman alias Wali conspired to incite, facilitate and advocate terrorism thereby waging war against the nation. Later, four of them were killed in an encounter with the Indian security forces.
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The accused were conducted Thareeqath classes at Neerchal, Poothappara, Kanhangad mosque, Karutha Makkath, Chettipadi, Kalamasseri Falcon Industrial building, Kaniyapuram Abdul Razzaq Valiyullahi Maqam, Kaloor Juma Masjid Shopping Complex, Hyderabad and Jamiya Nooriya Darga. The classes were conducted under the leadership of Nazeer and Abdul Jaleel. Abdul Jabbar. Pakistan national Wali was the mastermind of the Kashmir recruitment episode. He had arranged funds to carry out the anti-national activities in India, the charge sheet said.
The youths recruited in 2006, according to the charge sheet, were given arms training to wage war against India.
Assistant Solicitor General S Manu and central government standing counsel Mini Gopinath appeared for the prosecution in the case.