A Jamshedpur court on Friday acquitted three men accused of having links with Al Qaeda after the prosecution failed to provide evidence against them.
On Friday, the court of Additional District Judge (ADJ)-1, Vimesh Kumar Sahay, acquitted three suspects, including two from Jamshedpur, who were allegedly linked to Al- Qaida in the Indian subcontinent (AQIS), as the prosecution failed to provide any evidence of their involvement in the offense.
Back in 2016, an FIR was registered at Bistupur police station based on inputs from Delhi’s Special Task Force (STF). Authorities claimed that the suspects were linked to Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS).
The acquitted were identified as Maulana Kalimuddin Mujahid, Maulana Abdul Rahman Ali Khan alias Maulana Mansoor alias Cuttacki and Md Shami. Among them, Cuttacki who is from Cuttack in Odisha, and Shami, a resident of Dhatkidih in Bistupur, are currently in Ghaghidih central jail. Kalimuddin, a resident of Azadnagar, is however, out on bail.
The Case Background
Md Shami was arrested from Mewat in Haryana in January 2019 on the accusation of having links with an AQIS operative. They also arrested Cuttacki from Cuttack in 2015.
The allegations date back to suspicion of being part of an Al-Qaeda sleeper cell just before Republic Day celebrations. of 2016. The then Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Anoop Mathew had claimed that the suspects were involved in radicalizing youth and were interrogated for possible terror links.
In 2023, a Delhi court had convicted Shami and Cuttacki under the UAPA. They were brought to Jamshedpur later in the same year.
Referring to their acquittal, on Monday, defense counsel, Balai Panda said, “All witnesses (16) produced by the prosecution failed to prove the complicity of the three accused persons. The court then acquitted them due to lack of evidence.”
With the case now closed, the accused are set to walk free after years in custody.
The acquittal has now finally brought relief to their families. Speaking after the judgment, Cuttacki’s brother, Md Tahir, said, “The court’s judgment has restored our faith in the judiciary.”
