Two of the accused in the 2007 Hyderabad blasts were sentenced to death.
Highlights
- 2 Indian Mujahideen terrorists sentenced to death
- Man who helped them sentenced to life
- 44 people had died, 68 injured in two explosions in August 2007
Aneeq Sayeed and Ismail Chaudhary, two Indian Mujahideen terrorists convicted in the 2007 Hyderabad blasts case, were sentenced to death by a court on Monday. A third convict Tariq Anjum was sentenced to life imprisonment by the special National Investigation Agency court.
Two powerful explosions had ripped through a popular eatery and an open air theatre in Hyderabad on August 25, 2007, killing 44 people and wounding 68.
On September 4, Aneeq Sayeed, a 36-year-old computer shop owner from Pune and Md Akbar Ismail Chawdari, a 35-year-old, who used to repair mobile phones in Pune were found guilty. Earlier today, Tariq Anjum was convicted by a prison court for sheltering the two men.
Two others, Farooq Sharfuddin Tarkash and Mohammad Sadiq Israr Shaik, were acquitted in the case for lack of evidence. But they will remain in jail as they face charges in some other cases in Maharashtra.
Three other accused, Riyaz Bhatkal, Iqbal Bhatkal and Amir Reza Khan, have not been arrested yet.
The lawyer for one of the convicts said the sentencing today will be challenged in high court. "This is a very weak judgement. We will appeal in High Court against this," Gandam Gurumurthy, the lawyer for Aneek Sayeed, told news agency ANI.
On August 25, 2007, two synchronised blasts at Gokul Chaat, a popular eatery, had killed 32 people and left scores injured, and an open air theatre in Lumbini Park close to the state secretariat where 12 people died and 21 were wounded.