IM’s Sadiq Sheikh let off in 7/11 case

The discharge application filed by the ATS,however,added,“The accused has a deep involvement in terrorist activities and also knows and has relations with the prime accused and masterminds behind several blasts,the Bhatkal brothers – Riyaz and Iqbal. The ATS had thoroughly interrogated Sheikh by taking his police custody for over 25 days from the Special court. During the investigations he was thoroughly grilled regarding the train blast case.”

However,the ATS,which on November 30,2006 had filed an over-10,000 page chargesheet in the 7/11 case against 13 arrested accused and 15 wanted accused,was initially reluctant to seek Sheikh’s custody in the case. Despite the Crime Branch’s claims,top ATS officials maintained that they had not been ‘officially informed’ of Sadiq’s links to the 7/11 blasts.

In September last year,when the Mumbai Police Crime Branch arrested five IM operatives including Sheikh,and blamed them for the Ahmedabad and the Delhi serial blasts,they had also claimed that these men were the backbone of a terror module responsible for a majority of blasts across the country since 2005,including the 7/11 blasts.

Sheikh had also given a confession to the Gujarat Police regarding his involvement in the train blasts case. He later retracted the statement claiming that it was given under duress. He said that one Atif from Azamgarh had coerced him into giving the statement.