The Hindu : New Delhi News : Court admits revision plea in Red Fort attack case

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Jul 10, 2006

New Delhi

New Delhi

Court admits revision plea in Red Fort attack case

Staff Reporter

Police is seeking punishment enhancement from life term to death sentence for two accused

NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court has admitted an appeal and a revision petition by the Delhi police seeking enhancement of punishment from life imprisonment to death sentence against Nazir Ahmed Quasid and his son Farooq Ahmed Quasid and from seven years to life term against three other accused in the Red Fort attack case of December 22, 2000. Three Army personnel were killed in the attack.

A Division Bench comprising Justice R.S. Sodhi and Justice P.K. Bhasin admitted the appeal and the revision. The Bench said they would be taken up for hearing along with the appeals filed by the accused seeking acquittal in the case.

The Bench also condoned the delay in filing the appeal and the revision petition on the part of the prosecution.

In the appeal, the prosecution submitted that the trial court had erred in awarding life imprisonment to Nazir Ahmed Quasid and Farooq Ahmed Quasid as they also deserved death sentence awarded to Pakistan national and Lashkar-e-Taiba militant Mohammed Arif alias Asfaq in the case.

The prosecution argued that the three accused -- Asfaq, Nazir Ahmed and Farooq Ahmed -- could not be awarded different quantum of sentence as they were tried for a similar offence -- waging or attempting to wage war or abetting waging of war against the Government of India under Section 121 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

In the revision petition, it argued that the trial court was wrong in striking down the charge of criminal conspiracy against Rehmana Yusuf Farooqui, alleged wife of Asfaq, Babar Mohsin and Sadaquat Ali and sentencing each to seven years' imprisonment under Sections 118 (concealing design to commit offence punishable with death or imprisonment for life) and 216 (harbouring an offender who has escaped from custody or whose apprehension has been ordered) of IPC.

Their sentence should be enhanced from seven years to life term for entering into a criminal conspiracy to kill the Army personnel, the prosecution submitted.

A Delhi court had last year sentenced Asfaq to death and awarded life term to Nazir Ahmed Quasid and Farooq Ahmed Quasid and seven years' imprisonment to Rehmana Yusuf Farooqui, Babar Mohsin and Sadaquat Ali.

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