Hyderabad twin blasts case verdict: Special court convicts two, acquits two others; judgment on fifth accused due on 10 Sep

A Hyderabad special court on Tuesday convicted Aneeq Shafeeq Sayeed and Ismail Chaudhary in a case related to twin bomb blasts at Gokul Chat and Lumbini Park in Hyderabad in 2007 that claimed 44 lives and left 68 injured. Two out of the five accused, Farooq Sharfuddin Tarkish and Mohd Sadiq Israr Shaik have been acquitted. The Court will pronounce judgment on one more accused Tareeq Anjum on Monday, 10 September, reported ANI.

On 27 August, Second Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge T Srinivas Rao postponed the judgment in the case to 4 September.

The Counter Intelligence (CI) wing of the Telangana Police had investigated the case and arrested five accused, all alleged Indian Mujahideen operatives. The agency had filed four charge sheets against the five accused and also named two other absconding accused, Riyaz Bhatkal and Iqbal Bhatkal.

Those arrested were produced before the court on 27 August through video conferencing from Cherlapalli Central Prison, where they are currently lodged.

The trial against five accused in the case was shifted to a court hall located on the premises of Cherlapally Central Prison from a court located in Nampally Court complex in June.

The accused were charged under section 302 (murder) and other relevant provisions of the IPC and sections of Explosive Substances Act in connection with the twin blasts on 25 August, 2007, and also with regard to the recovery of an unexploded bomb found under a footover bridge at Dilsuknagar area.

According to the prosecution, Aneeq Shafique Sayeed allegedly planted the bomb at Lumbini Park while Riyaz Bhatkal planted the bomb at Gokul Chat while the unexploded bomb was planted by Ismail Chowdhari. Tarik Anjum is accused of giving shelter to the other accused after the blasts.

The near-simultaneous blasts at the popular eatery Gokul Chat killed 32 people and left 47 injured, while 12 others died and 21 were injured at the open air theatre at Lumbini Park, a few metres away from the state secretariat in the blasts.

With inputs from PTI