A special court this week rejected the bail application of Rizwan Momin, a tuition teacher booked in 2021 for alleged terror links. There are reasonable grounds prima facie, the court said, to believe the allegations against Momin. The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) arrested three persons - Momin, Mohammed Irfan, a tailor, and Zakir Hussain Shaikh in the terror plot case in 2021. Shaikh, the ATS alleged, had links with fugitive Chhota Shakeel. It was claimed that Momin assisted Shaikh. The anti-terror agency said Shaikh was given shelter by Momin, which helped destroy his phone. The mobile could have served as an evidence in the case, officials said. It was also alleged he helped Shaikh book a railway ticket. The ATS - following a search at his home - claimed to have found a chit in Urdu with an account of expenses written on it. While seeking bail, Momin said that "this did not show his involvement in any terror activity". There were 546 calls between Shaikh and Momin, the ATS claimed, during the alleged period of conspiracy. The court took the details into consideration, and rejected Momin's bail plea on April 19. In its chargesheet, ATS said Shaikh had received Rs 49,000 for committing an offence, claiming it was for a terror plot.
