Court reserves verdict on NIA plea in Samajhauta case

A special court today reserved its verdict on NIA's plea for taking to Hyderabad the forensic evidence and samples collected in Samjhauta Express blast case for comparison with those of bomb attacks in Malegaon, Ajmer and Hyderabad, in which the role of a right-wing activist is suspected.

Special National Investigation Agency Judge Subhash Mehla heard the arguments of the NIA and the defence in camera here.

Following a high court direction, Mehla, hearing charges against Swami Aseemanand and four other accused in the 2007 Samjhauta case, had allowed forensic experts from NIA to study the sealed material kept in a store room here last week.

NIA's Special Prosecutor RK Handa later filed an application seeking permission of the court to take the samples to the CFSL Laboratory at Hyderabad for their comparison with samples of other bomb attacks in Malegaon, Hyderabad and Ajmer.

Handa told PTI that after the physical examination of the samples, the CFSL team had made an Inspection Memo for comparison of samples of Samjhauta blast and other bomb attack cases.

He said these samples required scientific and analytical examination and various tests with sophisticated instrumental analysis which was possible at Hyderabad.

Handa said accused Aseemanand also placed his arguments before the judge after which the court reserved its order on the application of the NIA.

Earlier this month, Punjab and Haryana High Court had dismissed a petition filed by Aseemanand challenging orders of NIA special judge, Panchkula permitting the agency to unseal the seized material in Samjhauta blast case in the presence ofcounsel for the accused for comparison.

The high court had also issued directions to the NIA court to again fix the dates for the exercise.

On August 17, the court here had permitted NIA to unseal the seized material of the Samjhauta blast case on August 21 and 22 at NIA camp office, Panchkula, but the defence counsel had challenged it in High Court.

The NIA had earlier informed the High Court that various other trial courts at Mumbai, Hyderabad and Jaipur had already granted it permission for making comparison of material found at the blast sites and the initial exercise at all three places has been done by experts of CFSL, Hyderabad.

After a four-year probe, the NIA had on June 20, charged Aseemanand, Sunil Joshi (now dead), Lokesh Sharma, Sandeep Dange and Ramchandra Kalasangra alias Ramji with triggering explosions in the cross-border Samjhauta Express that left 68 people dead, mostly Pakistanis.

In the charge sheet filed in June before the vacation court of additional district and sessions judge Kanchan Mahi, the NIA had accused the five of hatching a criminal conspiracy which resulted in bomb blasts in the train.

Aseemanand and Sharma are already in judicial custody in Ambala jail.

Apart from Ajmer Dargah blast, which claimed three lives and left 15 others injured, Aseemanand and Sharma are accused in several other blast cases across the country, including those at Hyderabad's Mecca Masjid and Malegaon.