A local court is likely to pronounce its verdict on Monday in the twin bomb blasts, that took place at Lumbini Park and Gokul Chat Bhandar on August 25, 2007. The blasts had claimed 44 lives. Saturday was the 11th anniversary of the blasts.
The judgment against the alleged Indian Mujahideen operatives -- Mohammed Saddiq Ahmed Sheikh, Akbar Ismail Choudhary, Farooq Sharfuddin, Tarik Anjum and Anique Shafiq Syed -- may be delivered at a court hall in Nampally complex here.
The trials against the suspects was shifted to the court hall in the prison from a court located in Nampally complex in June owing to security reasons.
Earlier, this month arguments and counter arguments in the case were completed and the judge posted the judgment to August 27.
The Telangana Police’s Counter Intelligence Cell, which is investigating the case had filed three separate charge-sheets against the accused persons.
Sources said other three accused, IM chief Riyaz Bhatkal, his brother Iqbal Bhatkal and Raza Khan are still at large.
The alleged IM operatives planted three improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in the city on August 25, 2007, of which two went off and one unexploded bomb placed under a foot-over-bridge at Dilsukhnagar was recovered by the police.
The accused, who were arrested by the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad in 2008, told the investigators that during Riyaz Bhatkal’s second visit to Hyderabad, after they hired a flat, they visited Lumbini Park and decided to plant a bomb in the boat. Further, they came to Gokul Chat, had ice cream.
“After returning to the flat, Riyaz told us that one bomb will be kept in boat, one bomb in Gokul Chat and another in Dilsukhnagar,” one of the accused told investigators, adding that a day prior to the blast Riyaz completed assembling of the bombs in front of them.
On August 25, 2007, Riyaz asked the accused to buy two black colour backpacks, gift packing papers, three small locks and newspapers, “he also asked us to purchase three electric wrist watches and around 1 p.m. we returned to the flat,” the accused told the investigators. “He (Riyaz) said the blast should be at 7 p.m. and we should keep the battery in the clock at 6.45 p.m. He also asked us to switch off our cell phones,” they told police. One of the accused, Choudhary, reportedly told the police that as he was nervous, he could not place the battery properly in the timer bomb at Dilsukhnagar and returned to the flat. “By the time I reached the flat, Riyaz and Anique were already there. Riyaz questioned me about my operation and further Anique told us that he could not plant the bomb in the boat at Hussain Sagar and placed it in the laser show in Lumbini Park,” the accused told the police, adding that they returned to Pune one after the other.
Sources said over 160 witnesses were examined and cross-examined during the trials. The accused were charged under section 302 (murder) and other relevant provisions of the IPC and sections of the Explosive Substances Act.
Investigators stated that 32 persons died at Gokul Chat, while 12 were killed during Laser Show at Lumbini Park, opposite Secretariat. Sixty eight people were injured in the twin blasts.
