MUMBAI, 19 July 2007 — The special Terrorists and Disruptive Activities Act (TADA) court yesterday sentenced to death three people found guilty of involvement in the 1993 Mumbai serial bomb blasts that killed 257 people.
The court sentenced to death Pervez Sheikh, Abdul Gani Ismail Turk and Mohammed Mushtaq Tarani for their involvement in the planting of bombs in India’s financial and entertainment capital on March 12, 1993.
Indian police were out in full force at the court as anxious relatives and friends gathered to hear the fate of the men.
Turk, a close aide to prime accused Tiger Memon, was found guilty of parking an explosive-laden vehicle at Century Bazar in the Worli suburb. The explosion killed 113 people and injured 227 others.
Pervez was found guilty of placing an RDX-laden two-wheeler at Katha Bazar in south Mumbai, which killed four people and injured 21 others. He was also held responsible for planting a bomb at the Sea Rock Hotel in the Bandra suburb, which caused damage to properties worth tens of millions of rupees.
Tarani, the third accused, was instrumental in parking a vehicle containing RDX explosives at Shaikh Memon Street in south Mumbai and leaving an explosives-filled suitcase at Centaur Hotel near the airport.
TADA Judge P.D. Kode also sentenced 14 others accused in the case to life imprisonment. With today’s verdict, the number of those convicted so far has reached 80. In total, 100 people were found guilty of involvement in the “Black Friday” attacks.
Yesterday’s hearing was the first time the death penalty has been handed. The attacks were allegedly organized by Mumbai’s underworld in revenge for the demolition a few months earlier of Babri Masjid — a 16th century landmark mosque — which sparked deadly Hindu-Muslim clashes in which around 2,000 people, mainly Muslims, died.
“The accused have argued that the Babri Masjid and Hindu-Muslim riots impacted their actions. But this is not true... Their act is a disgrace to the community,” Judge Kode told the court. “It was simply a revengeful act,” he added.
The alleged masterminds of the blasts, Dawood Ibrahim and Tiger Memon, have been on the run since 1993. Indian investigators say they were helped by Pakistan’s intelligence service but Islamabad has denied any link. “This act was the most heinous,” Kode said of Turk’s bomb.
Chief prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam said more bombers are expected to be sentenced today.
The most high-profile figure caught in the case is Bollywood’s actor Sanjay Dutt, who is to appear in court on Saturday although he will most likely be sentenced early next week, one of Dutt’s lawyers said.
Dutt, out on bail since December last year, was found guilty of possessing weapons, but cleared of the more serious charge of conspiracy in the attacks. In recent weeks, Dutt has been filming nonstop to complete his existing movie contracts prior to being sentenced. In all, 12 bombs exploded across the city, including at landmarks such as the stock exchange and the state-run Air-India airline office headquarters.
The prosecution is also petitioning the Supreme Court to seek the death penalty for some of the other accused in the blasts. The latest court hearing comes a week after Mumbai marked the first anniversary of a series of bomb attacks against its busy rail network, which killed 186 people and injured 800 others.
The attacks on the sprawling commuter rail network in the vibrant city of 18 million almost derailed a peace process between India and Pakistan. Police have filed charges against 18 Indian nationals, five of whom allegedly planted the bombs, and 10 Pakistanis, who are reported to be on the run.
