The Special TADA court on Monday sentenced four former police constables to six years' rigorous imprisonment for aiding and abetting the conspirators of the 1993 Mumbai blasts and allowing explosives to enter the city after taking a bribe.
The court also convicted the first person in the Sanjay Dutt arms supply link — Manzoor Ahmed Sayyed — to ten years’ rigours imprisonment for aiding and abetting prime conspirators in distributing the arms and ammunition.
Special Judge Pramod Kode convicted four police constables — Ashok Muneshwar, Ramesh Malli, P.M. Mahadik, Srikrishna Palshikar — to six years’ imprisonment and also imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 on each of them. All four have spent three years in custody and will get the benefit.
This is the first sentencing of public servants in connection with the blasts which took place on March 12, 1993 killing 257 people and injuring over 700.
Found guilty of distributing weapons to co-accused, Mansoor had gone to actor Sanjay Dutt's residence along with other accused and supplied weapons prior to the blasts. Dutt kept an AK-56 rifle and returned the rest.
The court observed that the convicts had connived with the co-accused and showing leniency would send wrong signals to the society. Judge Kode said that the convicts had already spent three years in prison, robbing them of their job and deteriorating their financial condition. Thus, giving them maximum punishment would not be right, though he maintained that they should be punished.
{{/usCountry}}The court observed that the convicts had connived with the co-accused and showing leniency would send wrong signals to the society. Judge Kode said that the convicts had already spent three years in prison, robbing them of their job and deteriorating their financial condition. Thus, giving them maximum punishment would not be right, though he maintained that they should be punished.
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