Surat: The court in Surat on Saturday acquitted 122 persons accused of participating in a meeting organised by banned outfit Students’ Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) in December 2001 for lack of evidence. Initially, there were 127 accused booked under various sections of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), however, five of them died during the course of the trial.
Chief judicial magistrate Amit Dave, acquitted all the accused who were arrested for being members of SIMI and attending a meeting at Rajeshree Hall in Navsari Bazaar area of Surat on December 27, 2001.
The central government had through its notification dated September 27, 2001 banned SIMI. The accused belonged to different parts of Gujarat as well as from Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.
The court observed that the prosecution failed to produce satisfactory evidence to establish that the accused persons belonged to the SIMI and had gathered to promote the activities of the banned outfit.
“The court also observed that the prosecution also failed to prove that the alleged unlawful literature was recovered from the spot. The court took note of the failure of police in taking approval of the central government before arrest of the accused as per UAPA norms,” said M M Shaikh, a defence lawyer.
A total of 111 of the 127 persons accused in the case were present in the court and were happy with the acquittal. They said that 20 years of their life was spent facing financial difficulties and social stigma.
According to case details, after being arrested most of the accused spent at least nine months in jail before getting bail. The meeting was called under an informal organisation All India Minority Education Board. However, the police alleged that the meeting was being held by members SIMI to carry out unlawful activities.
Of the 127, 124 were arrested from the hall while others were caught during the course of the investigation.
“I was a topper in my college and wanted to become a journalist, but now I sell spices. No one is here to answer our questions about why we were framed in a false case and so many lives were ruined,” said Asif Shaikh, one of the acquitted accused from Ahmedabad.
“Police levelled baseless charges and the officer who lodged the complaint, police inspector J M Pancholi, was also the investigation officer. It is against the law. In all only 20 witnesses were examined by the court,” said K G Shaikh, another defence lawyer.