‘Terror’ plot: Delhi court acquits 5 men, says conversation with Pak number not enough to prove conspiracy

Additional Sessions Judge Dharmendra Rana acquitted Mohd Shahid, Mohd Rashid, Ashabuddin, Abdul Subhan and Arshad Khan, who were charged under Section 120 B of the Indian Penal Code and several sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, on Monday.

The court acquitted the accused by stating, “Mere recovery of the mobile phones and sim cards used to converse amongst each other or converse with a Pakistani number is not sufficient to prove the existence of any conspiracy.”

Subhan and Ashabuddin were previously arrested in 2001 by the CBI for allegedly carrying a consignment of explosives and weapons in Gujrat. Subhan walked out of jail in 2010 and communal riots which broke out in Rajasthan the following year “kindled his passion for jihad”, the prosecution had alleged.

According to the prosecution, Subhan made a plan to kidnap a businessman to raise money for jihad. The accused were allegedly also in touch with a Pakistan-based terrorist, Javed Balluchi.

However, the court agreed with the arguments made by the defence counsel that “there is nothing on record to establish that the Pakistani number belongs to the dreaded terrorist Javed Balluchi”.

The court also observed that the investigating agency did not seem to be sure about his real name as it emerged from the records that the prosecution referred to Javed Balluchi as Javed Wadaich and Javed Chaudhary also.

“I have no hesitation in observing that the investigating agency has made no efforts to establish the identity of obscured entity known by the name of Javed Balluchi and it is not even clear as to if some person by the name of Javed Balluchi actually exists in Pakistan or some mischievous person was acting under the fake identity,” the court said.

At best, the call records, the court said, only prove that there was some conversation between Indian citizens on the one end and a person using a Pakistani mobile number on the other end. However, that by itself is not sufficient to presume that accused Balluchi actually existed or that the accused persons conversing with him were involved in any conspiracy to commit any terrorist act or kidnap any rich businessman.