E-Paper
No scope for reformation of ’03 blasts’ accused: Court
“Since the accused are blood thirsty, there is no scope for their reformation and re-habitation,” said Special Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA) court Judge M.R. Puranik, reports HT Correspondent.
“Since the accused are blood thirsty, there is no scope for their reformation and re-habitation,” said Special Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA) court Judge M.R. Puranik.
Puranik said this on August 6 while sentencing the three accused in the 2003 Gateway and Zaveri Bazar blasts case to death. The judgment copy of the case said the court classified the case as “the rarest of rare”.
The court had convicted Ashrat Ansari (32), a zari worker, Hanif Sayeed (46), an auto driver and his wife Fehmida (45) for their involvement in 2003 blasts and had handed over capital punishment to all of them.
Fifty-six people were killed and over 250 injured in the twin blasts at Gateway and Zaveri Bazar and the blast on a BEST bus at Ghatkopar, killing two people.
The court held that the accused had shown total disregard for human life.
It was not a case of killing of 54 people but massacre of 54 innocent lives who were helpless, the judge observed.
The special court also rejected Fehmida’s lawyer’s contention that she was not a part of the conspiracy and held that she had accompanied her husband for selecting the place of planting (and exploding) the bomb at the Gateway of India.
“She has thus committed terrorist act,” observed the court, adding that she on her “own accord and free will accompanied her husband”.
