Court declares two accused as proclaimed offenders

Coimbatore: The judicial magistrate court-III, Coimbatore, has declared two absconding accused involved in different cases as proclaimed offenders. While A Raja alias Tailor Raja from Bilal Estate is absconding since 1996, Mujibur Rahman alias Muji from Noorabad in Podanur is on the run since 1997.
On April 22, 1996, Raja along with Abbas, Abu alias Abudhakir and Samsudeen entered the office of the deputy inspector general (DIG-prisons) on the Coimbatore central prison premises and hurled five petrol bombs. They also attacked jail warder Boopalan with machetes. Though senior prison officers were the target of the attack as they had allegedly harassed some Muslim prisoners, Boopalan became the victim. Boopalan was admitted to the Coimbatore Medical College Hospital (CMCH) where he died without responding to treatment on April 24, 1996.
The Race Course police registered a case against Abbas, Abudhakir, Samsudeen and Tailor Raja under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, Sections 3 of the Explosive Substances Act and 25 (1) (a) of the Arms Act. Except for Tailor Raja, three other accused were arrested and remanded in judicial custody. Police have failed to trace Tailor Raja to date.
Meanwhile, the case was transferred to the CB-CID special investigation division, Coimbatore. The trial of the case took place before the first ADJ court, which acquitted the three accused. The prosecution also suggested that it was not a fit case for appeal against the trio.
On November 21, 2022, the judicial magistrate court-III announced Tailor Raja as a proclaimed offender and ordered him to appear before the court on or before December 23, 2022.
Muji was among the 12 Muslim youths against whom a case was registered by the Race Course police for planting a bomb in a travel bag at the car parking area of Classic Garden Apartment near CMCH on December 1, 1997. Fortunately, the bomb didn’t explode. Their initial plan was to explode the bomb at the city police commissioner’s office. Due to heavy security near the commissioner’s office, they changed the plan.
Police arrested Sait alias Santhu Mohammed and nine others in connection with the case. Shajahan was arrested by police in 2014. But police were not able to trace the whereabouts of Muji till now.
Meanwhile, the case was transferred to the CB-CID SID and the trial against 10 people took place before the special court for the trial of bomb blast cases. The court acquitted all 10 accused. The trial against Shajahan is yet to start.
The prosecution went for an appeal against the release of 10 people before the Madras high court, which upheld the lower court’s acquittal. Meanwhile, the prosecution went for an appeal before the Supreme Court, where the case is pending. The judicial magistrate court-III declared Muji as a proclaimed offender on November 21, 2022, and ordered him to appear before the court on or before December 23, 2022. Tailor Raja and Muji are also wanted in the 1998 Coimbatore serial bomb blast cases.