8 acquitted in Haren Pandya murder conspiracy case for lack of evidence

Hyderabad: The metropolitan sessions judge at Nampally criminal courts in Hyderabad has acquitted 8 men from the city who were accused of being involved in a criminal conspiracy of Haren Pandya murder case in 2003.

Former Gujarat home minister Haren Pandya was murdered in Ahmedabad by unidentified assailants on 26th March 2003. Hyderabad central crime station sleuth had filed a case against several youths from Old City of Hyderabad. They were booked under IPC sections of waging war against the state, sedition, causing disappearance of evidence, attacks on a religion and section 12 of the Indian Passport Act. They were also charged with traveling abroad for training in terror activities by the police.

The persons namely Zubair Shareef Syed Mubasheer Hussain, Syed Aizaz Ahmed, Mohammed Wajid Ahmed, Mohammed Majeed, Syed Abdul Nayeem, Syed Omer and Syed Aijaz Ahmed alias Chhota Aijaz were arrested. The police claimed that they were sent to Hong Kong and Bangkok for subversive activities training. They had allegedly tampered with their passports for the trip.

Their family members denied those allegations. The metropolitan sessions judge acquitted them after the prosecution couldn’t manage to prove the charges against them.