2 LeT militants planning blasts, convicted

A city court has convicted two Lashkar-e-Tayyeba operatives, including a Pakistani national, planning to carry out terror strikes in the Capital, reports Sumit Saxena.

A city court has convicted two Lashkar-e-Tayyeba operatives, including a Pakistani national, planning to carry out terror strikes in the Capital.

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The Delhi Police had arrested Asif Ali, a native of Faisalabad in Pakistan, and Mohammed Issha, a native of Uttar Pradesh, near Ajmeri Gate with two kilograms of RDX and three detonators in 2006.

Asif, during his interrogation, divulged details about terrorist camps operational in Pakistan and Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK), the police said.

“He was from an elite group of terrorists trained to strike various key locations in India. Asif was hand picked by the LeT commanders to undergo a 15-day refresher training program after a three-months intensive course,” a senior police official, who did not want to be named, said on Thursday.

The prosecution had contended that Asif had a legitimate Pakistani passport.

“It was his first assignment and he was supposed to target a heavily crowded market in the capital. He had intensive training in bomb assembling and weapon handling,” said the police.

Additional Sessions Judge Dharmesh Kumar Sharma upheld the prosecution’s contention and said the police have established their conviction in Explosives Act and Unlawful Activities Act.

The duo would be sentenced on October 26.

This is the fifth conviction under the Unlawful Activities Act this year for the Delhi Police.

During the arguments, the police established that Asif from Pakistan went to Nepal via Pakistani Airlines then crossed the Nepal border via road.

“Asif met Issha’s father Abu Ibrar in Lucknow. Ibrar introduced him to his son and asked them to go to Delhi to conduct the terror attack,” the Delhi police contended before the court.