Delhi’s Special Cell court discharges ‘Lashkar operative’ accused of facilitating infiltration, says no admissible evidence

While the detailed judgment has not yet been released, advocate M S Khan, who represented Ahmed, said the court noted that the Special Cell of Delhi Police did not have any admissible evidence against the accused. The defence counsel had argued the Special Cell chargesheet was based only on disclosure statements given to police against Ahmed by others arrested in a separate case of arms and explosives. These statements are not admissible as evidence in law.

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“In the absence of any admissible evidence qua Irfan Ahmed, there is no material brought by the prosecution to substantiate the charge of criminal conspiracy on the basis of which any charge can be framed against him. For the reasons recorded above, the accused Irfan Ahmed is discharged,” the court said in the judgment issued on May 30.

Ahmed, 51, was accused in several cases and also held guilty in 1999 by a Delhi court for the serial train blasts case of 1993. He is also accused of having planted a bomb on the Delhi-Howrah Rajdhani Express on December 6, 1993. He allegedly escaped while on parole in 2001, and fled to Nepal. In an FIR filed in 2006, the Special Cell of Delhi Police had sought his prosecution for offences committed under several sections of the IPC and under provisions of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and Explosive Substances Act.