1993 blasts: One convicted, one acquitted

A designated Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention Act) court on Tuesday held Niyaz Ahmed Shaikh guilty of conspiracy in the 1993 bomb blasts case. He was also found guilty on the count of obtaining training in handling arms and explosives in Pakistan.

Sheikh was also convicted for attending conspiracy meetings at the residence of co-accused Nasir Ahmed.

TADA judge P D Kode also convicted Niyaz on the charge of conducting a survey of Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai building, a potential target for blasts alongwith prime accused Tiger Memon, Javed Chikna and Mohammad Usman Jam Khan.

The court, however, acquitted Rukhsana Mohammad Shafi Zariwala of charges of aiding and abetting terrorist acts. Judge Kode acquitted her as the prosecution failed to prove its case.

Rukhsana is the second woman accused in the case to be acquitted, other being Rahin Memon, sister-in-law of prime accused Tiger Memon.

The judge discarded the evidence adduced by prosecution to show that Rukhsana had transported arms in a taxi from suburban Jogeshwari to Musafirkhana along with her husband Mohammad Shafi and other co-accused Pervez Shaikh.

While Shafi is absconding, Pervez was acquitted of same charges as Rukhsana, though he was found guilty on other counts.

The judge held that confessions of two co-accused implicating Rukhsana were not properly recorded so he was not accepting them. Besides the confessions of the co-accused, there was no independent evidence to corroborate charges against her, the judge held.