Court acquits 5 involved in 1997 Jammu blast

A local court acquitted five persons for lack of evidence in connection with the blast nine years ago.

In second setback to Jammu and Kashmir police in two days, a local court on Tuesday acquitted five persons for lack of evidence in connection with the blast at Jammu bus stand in which 15 people were killed and 72 injured nine years ago.

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Coming down heavily on the investigating agencies for its total failure to produce evidence, the presiding officer TADA/POTA court ND Wani acquitted the five persons.

Citing lack of evidence, District and Session Court here had yesterday acquitted all six persons in the 2002 Raghunath temple terror attack case, in which 11 people were killed, saying a majority of the prosecution witnesses failed to identify any of the accused.

Wani, who is also Third Additional Sessions Judge, while acquitting the accused - Faiz-ul-Wahid Gujjar, Haji Sahib, Hafeez-ul-Rehman Sheikh, Ghulam Nabi Baba and Abdul Rashid Baba - observed that in the present case there is not even an iota of evidence to establish the presence of the accused at bus stand and investigating officer have failed to prove it.

It is also in the evidence of the witnesses examined by the prosecution that 15 persons died on spot and more than 72 persons injured in the blast, which took place near a music function where Punjabi pop-singer Daler Mehandi was performing on March 29, 1997.