He submitted his resignation to the Chief Justice of Andhra Pradesh. The reason of his resignation is yet not known
K Ravinder Reddy, the judge of the NIA Special Court who pronounced the acquittal of the five facing trial in the Mecca Masjid blast case, has resigned, only hours after the verdict.
He submitted his resignation to the Chief Justice of Andhra Pradesh. The reason is yet not known, with some reports suggesting that he resigned "due to personal reasons".
The judge had acquitted all the accused in the Mecca Masjid blast case, including Swami Aseemanand, citing lack of evidence earlier today.
All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) party chief Asaduddin Owaisi reacted to the resignation in a tweet, saying, "Judge who gave acquittal to all accused in Mecca Masjid Blast RESIGNS very intriguing and I am surprised with the Lordship decision (sic)".
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A powerful blast, triggered by remote control, had ripped through the over four-century-old mosque on May 18, 2007, when devotees had gathered for Friday prayers, killing nine and wounding 58.
The case was initially probed by local police before being transferred to CBI, and finally in 2011 to the NIA, the country's premier anti-terror investigation agency.
Five of the accused — Lokesh Sharma, Swami Aseemanand alias Naba Kumar Sarkar, Devendra Gupta, Bharat Mohanlal Rateshwar alias Bharat Bhai and Rajendra Chowdhary — were arrested in the case.
Judge suspended on disciplinary grounds
Reddy was suspended in June 2016 by the High Court of Judicature in Hyderabad on disciplinary grounds following an agitation against provisional allocation of judicial officers between Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.