The innocent have finally received justice, but justice remains incomplete until those who ruined their lives are held accountable, said Maulana Arshad Madani, President of Jamiat-e-Ulema Hind
NEW DELHI — The Jamiat-e-Ulema Hind, a prominent Muslim organisation led by Maulana Arshad Madani welcomed the Bombay High Court verdict delivered on Monday acquitting all 12 Muslim youths in 2006 Mumbai train blast case.
After a long wait of 19 years, justice was finally served to the Muslim youths who had been falsely implicated in the case. The court declared the death sentences given by the Special MCOCA Court to five accused Ehtesham Qutbuddin Siddiqui, Kamal Ansari, Faisal Ata-ur-Rehman Sheikh, Asif Bashir, and Naveed Hussain as illegal.
Alongside this, the High Court also overturned the life imprisonment sentences handed down by the MCOCA Court to seven other accused Mohammad Ali Sheikh, Suhail Sheikh, Zamir Latif-ur-Rahman, Dr. Tanveer, Muzammil Ata-ur-Rahman Sheikh, Majid Shafi, and Sajid Marghoob Ansari.
In its verdict, Bombay High Court declared the lower court’s decision unlawful and reversed it in favour of the accused. The special two-member bench comprising Justice Anil Kilor and Justice Shyam Chandak announced the judgment on Monday at 9:30 AM.
The court completely rejected the confessional statements obtained from the accused, declaring them illegal. Similarly, the court refused to accept the testimony of the government witnesses.
Maulana Arshad Madani, described Bombay High Court’s verdict as a triumph of justice. He stated that today is a momentous day for the families of those who have been proven innocent, as they had to wait nineteen long years for this momment. We cannot even imagine the horrific emotional torment they must have endured during these 19 years filled with hope and despair, Maulana Madani said.
He further emphasised that this is another historic success of Jamiat Ulama Maharashtra’s Legal Cell, whose relentless legal battle resulted in the honorable acquittal of 12 individuals, including 5 who had been sentenced to death and 7 to life imprisonment.
“Our lawyers worked day and night, presenting such well-reasoned and compelling arguments in court that the entire web of prosecution’s lies was exposed,” said MAula Madani expressing gratitude to the team of lawyers.
Maulana Madani stated that this verdict once again confirms what we have been saying for years that the arrest of Muslim youths under false charges of terrorism and the destruction of their lives is part of a larger agenda. He said that by doing this, not only are innocent individuals thrown behind bars, but an entire community is also defamed and humiliated through such actions.
“There must be accountability for investigating agencies and the police,” Maulana said warning that until this accountability is established, innocent lives will continue to be destroyed—not only under the guise of anti-terror laws but also through misuse of other legal provisions.
Maulana Madani also said that the lack of any kind of accountability gives law enforcement agencies complete freedom to criminalise anyone they want.
He further stated that, given the current political climate in the country, Muslims have become an easy target for the police and investigative agencies.
Maulana Madani said that while we wholeheartedly welcome this verdict, in our view, justice remains incomplete until accountability is established and those who destroyed innocent lives are punished.
Maulana Madani also lambasted the behavior of so-called national media, saying that often the biased electronic media creates a storm at the time of Muslims’ arrests and starts a trial against them. But when these same people are honourably acquitted in court, the media suddenly becomes silent. This partial attitude is against the ethics of journalism.