New Delhi: After nearly a decade of legal battles, a Jamshedpur court on Friday acquitted three men accused of having links with Al-Qaeda due to a lack of substantial evidence.
The Additional District Judge-1, Vimesh Kumar Sahay, ruled in favor of the accused, including two individuals from Jamshedpur, after the prosecution failed to establish their involvement in any criminal activities.
The case originated in 2016 when an FIR was registered at Bistupur Police Station following intelligence inputs from Delhi’s Special Task Force (STF). Authorities had claimed the accused were affiliated with Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS).
The three men who have now been exonerated are Maulana Kaleemuddin Mujahid, a resident of Azad Nagar; Maulana Abdul Rahman Ali Khan, also known as Maulana Mansoor or Katki, from Cuttack, Odisha; and Mohammad Shami, from Dhatkidih, Bistupur. While Kaleemuddin was out on bail, Katki and Shami were still incarcerated at Ghaghidih Central Jail before the ruling.
Mohammad Shami was arrested in January 2019 from Mewat, Haryana, on charges of alleged Al-Qaeda links. Katki had been apprehended earlier in 2015 from Cuttack, Odisha. In 2023, a Delhi court convicted Shami and Katki under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) before they were later transferred to Jamshedpur.
This acquittal underscores serious concerns regarding prolonged detentions and the lack of concrete evidence in cases involving terrorism charges. Legal experts and human rights organizations are likely to scrutinize the verdict, raising broader questions about civil liberties, due process, and the justice system in India.
