Five suspected terrorists sent to JC till June 21

Mumbai, June 12 (UNI) The Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) court today granted judicial custody to the five suspected terrorists, arrested by the anti-terrorist squad (ATS) of Mumbai, in connection with the seizure of arms and ammunition from Aurangabad last month.

Mushtaq Ahmed (25), Javed Ahmed (29), Afzalkhan Majid (26), Riyaz Ramjan alias Raju (36) and Dr Mohammed Sharif Ahmed (33) were produced before MCOCA Judge Mridula Bhatkar today, who directed them to judicial custody till June 21.

The first four had been arrested on May 13, while the last was arrested on May 14 by the ATS and were produced before the court as their police custody expired today.

Sharif Ahmed told the court today that he had been assaulted brutally and threatened for life by two police officers and pressurised to give his confessional statement.

Considering the allegations, Justice Bhatkar directed him to be taken to the state-run St George's Hospital here and asked the Superintendent of the hospital to make arrangements for his medical examination.

The court also directed the Superintendent to make the report of the same available to the court tomorrow before 1130 hrs.

On an application for safety and security of the doctor by his lawyer, she also passed directions to the Superintendent of the Arthur Road Jail to look into the matter if any complaints of beating or torture by jail staff and convict-overseers was brought to his notice by the accused and such incident was to be reported to the court, as he was to serve his judicial custody there.

It maybe recalled that two others -- Khatib Imran Akhil Ahmed (23) and Shaikh Vihkar Ahmed Shaikh (23) -- were also arrested last week and sent to police custody for further investigation into their role in this organised crime syndicate.

Also, on the last ocassion the court had granted judicial custody to Mohd Amir Shakir Ahmed, Mohd Juber Sayyed Anwar, Mohd Muzaffar Mohd Tanveer and Abdul Azeem Abdul Jameel Shaikh.

The total number of suspected terrorists arrested in this case has reached to 13, of which four are still in the police custody.

The ATS, in their joint operation with the Aurangabad police on May 9, had arrested a terrorist which led to the arrest of other 12 people including an activist of the banned Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) and recovery of huge arms and ammunitions from them.

The ATS had so far recovered 16 AK-47 rifles, 3,200 live catridges, 62 magazines, 43 kg of cyclonite (RDX) and 50 hand grenades, including two vehicles, from the arrested persons.

The investigation team informed the court that during interrogation, they had revealed a conspiracy of creating terror by using arms and ammunition and explosives seized from the arrested accused. They had even admitted to having provoked some youth for going to Pakistan for training.

UNI ARM SSS MP RS1937