7/11 Verdict: Jamiat to appeal against verdict in Bombay High Court

“We will wait for the court to announce the quantum of punishment. We will definitely challenge the order in the Bombay High Court,” Azmi said from New Delhi, where he is attending a working committee meeting of the Jamiat.

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The BJP-led government in the state has maintained that the Jamiat has links with the underworld. “The head of Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind which helps many terror accused and those involved in serious criminal cases has links with Chotta Shakeel,” BJP MLA Ashish Shelar had told the Assembly last year. “The government should inquire into the working of this organisation should ban it if need arises.”
Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis had also announced a probe into the working of the Jamiat. The investigation, however, is yet to yield any result.

The organisation has spent Rs 2.89 crore in 2013 alone to provide legal aid to Muslim terror accused. They claim that the bulk of the money is received through public donation during Ramzaan.

“We are a trust and all the money comes through public donation. All our funds are accounted for. We are ready to face any probe,” Azmi said. Jamiat, a 95-year-old organisation of Muslim clerics, started providing legal aid in 2007 after many Muslim youths were arrested in 2006. “In 2006, nearly 43 Muslim boys were arrested for their alleged involvement in terror cases. Initially, their families tried to fund their legal defence on their own, but later turned to us. Our leadership decided that we should support them and a legal defence cell was formed,” Azmi recalled.

Jamiat funds local lawyers as well as noted advocates like K T Tulsi, Kamini Jaiswal and Shanti Bhushan to fight on behalf of the accused.
“We conduct a screening at our level to check antecedents of the people who approach us. We only take up cases of those who are innocent. Till date, we have won 22 cases in which 56 people have been acquitted. We have managed to get 25 people out on bail,” Azmi said. The organisation has faced its share of failures and two individuals for whom it was fighting were convicted.

Mazgaon resident Javed Mozawala was sentenced to seven years in jail on charges of spying for Pakistan’s ISI. One Mohammad Shafi Qamar Afghani was sentenced to five years under the Official Secrets Act. Azmi claims that inspite of these setbacks, the organisation will continue to work towards “protecting innocent Muslims”.