Monday, September 18, 2006

The special TADA court hearing the 1993 Mumbai blasts case has found two of the accused, Asghar Mukadam and his accomplice Qureshi guilty of executing the explosion near Plaza Cinema that killed 10 people and injured 27. Mukadam, the manager of main-accused Tiger Memon (who is still absconding), parked a car laden with RDX near the theatre. Qureshi aided Mukadam by arranging for the explosives to be brought from Raigad to Mumbai.

Special Judge P.D Kode convicted Mukadam of 12 of the 14 charges brought against him, including abetting and intentionally facilitating the commission of terrorist acts, collecting funds for terrorist acts and conspiracy. Qureshi was found guilty of transporting the RDX via boat to the Maharashtra coast, and then bringing it into Mumbai. He was also found to have participated in the meeting where the bombings were planned, and visiting Pakistan to be trained in the execution of the attacks.

The TADA court began pronouncing the verdict in the 1993 bombings which killed 257 in 13 explosions, on the 12 of this month, and has so far found seven persons guilty in the serial blasts case. Four members of the Memon family were convicted last week, and Mohammad Shoaib Kasam Ghansar (Tiger Memon’s hitman) was found guilty on Thursday.