Five 1993 serial bomb blasts accused to face separate trial

Mumbai, Aug 21 (UNI) After the arrest of Karimullah Khan, the absconding accused of the 1993 serial bomb blasts, by CID crime branch sleuths, as many as five accused will now face separate trials.

Among the five are extradiated gangster Abu Salem and Dubai deported accused Mustafa Dossa alias Mustafa Majnu.

Earlier, 100 of total 123 accused were convicted by the designated TADA court last year for their involvement in the blasts, which claimed 257 lives and injured 713 others, besides damaging property worth Rs 30 crore. The trial was the country's largest trial that went on for thirteen long years.

Among the convicted were family members of prime absconding accused Tiger Memon, Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt and others, who were awarded various punishments ranging from death penalty to three years.

Since Salem and others were arrested after the conclusion of the main trial, named as bomb blast case (BBC)-1, a seperate trial has commenced against them.

After the arrest of Khan, 25 accused were still absconding, which included underworld don Dawood Ibrahim Kaskar, blasts mastermind Tiger Memon and others.

One of the defence advocates Subhash Kanse, while talking to UNI, said Khan was listed as absonding accused number 25 in the list and he was also declared as proclaimed offender.

He said some of the convicts has named him in their confessional statements. One of the landing agent from his group was awarded life imprisonment, considering his old age. Most of the accused were given life or a minimum of 14 years imprisonment.

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