Updated at 3.30 pm
MUMBAI: In a setback to the prosecution, a Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act court on Thursday acquitted five accused in the 1993 bomb blast case. They were charged with going to Dubai on their way to Pakistan for arms training. The court said the evidence against them was "weak" and fell short of conviction.
However, the court convicted Sarfaraz Phanse, an aide of prime conspirator Tiger Memon, for aiding terrorist acts by facilitating the landing of arms and explosives, at Shekhadi coast in Raigad district, which were used in the 1993 blasts.
Phanse is the son of Dawood Takla, who was convicted last week for attending a meeting called by prime conspirator Dawood Ibrahim in Dubai to plot the 1993 serial explosions.
Phanse, who faces maximum punishment of life imprisonment, was acquitted of the conspiracy charge.
Mansoor Qureshi, Shaikh Kasam Babulal, Sultan-e-rome Ali Gul, Abdul Aziz Kader and Mohammed Iqbal Ibrahim were acquitted as the prosecution failed to prove that they had gone to Dubai for arms training.
The Central Bureau of Investigation alleged that they could not go to Pakistan from Dubai as the conspirators did not make their travel arrangements.
They were acquitted of charges of attending the meeting in Dubai.
The court observed that only one of them had given a confession that had not been accepted, as it was not properly recorded.
Judge PD Kode said although the accused had gone to Dubai in February 1993, there was no evidence to show that they had gone there to take part in the conspiracy.
On hearing the verdict, the five thanked the judge and shook hands with their lawyers, Farhana Shah, Subhash Kanse and Abbas Kazmi.
Phanse, who was convicted, put up a brave face.
Asserting that the acquittal of five accused was not a setback to the prosecution, CBI prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam said generally in a case of such large magnitude the court might acquit some accused.
However, he said, CBI would examine the reasons of acquittal and may challenge the verdict in the Supreme Court after seeking legal opinion.
After the verdict, the accused said they were happy as the court had acquitted them. They said they had gone to Dubai as carriers or agents to bring foreign goods to India and that they were not involved in the blast conspiracy.
Earlier, Mushtaq Tarani, who was convicted on Wednesday for complicity in the Centaur hotel blast and planting an RDX-laden scooter at Shaikh Memon Street, told the court that he was not well and hence not fit to give a statement on the quantum of sentence.
Tarani said he would give such a statement next week.
