Ajmer blast case: Two including a former RSS worker get life imprisonment
The National
Investigation Agency (NIA) special court in Jaipur today sentenced Devendra
Gupta and Bhavesh Patel to life in jail in the Ajmer blast case. The two were convicted
along with Sunil Joshi on March 6. Joshi died under mysterious circumstances
soon after the bombing, in which three people were killed and 17 others were
injured. The October 11, 2007 blast took place during the month of Ramazan and
targeted the Khwaja Chishti shrine.
Both Devendra Patel
and Sunil Joshi are former RSS pracharaks.
BHARAT BHUSHAN - Narendra Modi's Republic of fear ...
BHARAT BHUSHAN - Narendra Modi's Republic of fear ...
- On March 6, the court found three of the accused guilty in the 2007 blast case. Those convicted include Devendra Gupta, Bhavesh Patel and Sunil Joshi. Both Devendra Gupta and Sunil Joshi are former Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) pracharaks.
- The NIA court found the three men guilty
of conspiracy, planting bombs and inciting religious sentiments. While
Devendra Gupta and Bhavesh Patel have been in judicial custody, Sunil
Joshi had died mysteriously in 2007, soon after the Ajmer bombing.
- The remaining accused, including
Aseemanand, Chandrashekhar Leve, Mukesh Vasani, Bharat Mohan Rateshwar,
Lokesh Sharma, Mehul Kumar and Harshad Solanki were acquitted in the case.
Three accused - Suresh Nair, Sandeep Dange and Ramchandra - were declared
absconders.
- The National Investigation Agency had
accused Aseemanand of masterminding the blast. The Jaipur court, however,
acquitted Asseemand and others for the lack of evidence. The court also
did not find any involvement of senior RSS functionary Indresh Kumar in
the blast.
- The case had witnessed a major twist when Bhavesh Patel, one of the three men convicted, accused several Congress leaders, including Digvijaya Singh and former Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde of pressurising him to name senior RSS leaders, including current RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat and senior RSS functionary Indresh Kumar as being complicit in the blast case. He demanded a judicial enquiry into his accusations and into the alleged role of Congress leaders and NIA officers.
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