Srinagar, Dec 31: A special NIA Court here has acquitted three persons allegedly involved in terror activities, holding that the prosecution failed to prove their charges beyond a reasonable doubt.
The court of Additional Sessions Judge, Manjeet Rai, designated under the NIA Act, acquitted Wajid Ahmad Bhat, Masrat Bilal Bhuru and Rameez Ahmad Dar and ordered their release forthwith, if not required in any other case. The trio from south Kashmir’s Kulgam district had been arrested on October 10, 2022, from a check-post (Naka) near Command Post Batamaloo here, according to prosecution.
The prosecution said that the arrest of the three men was made after grenades and magazines with live rounds were recovered from them and they were booked under the UAPA and Arms Act.
After hearing the parties, the court held that it is settled that in a criminal trial, the prosecution must prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt and that suspicion, however strong, could not take the place of proof. “The present case is marked by material discrepancies about how the accused came to be apprehended and what exactly was recovered from whom,” the court said.
With regard to the absence of independent witnesses, the court observed that the alleged place of occurrence is a busy public area with regular traffic and surrounding shops, facts conceded by three prosecution witnesses. “Yet, no shopkeeper, commuter, passer-by or CRPF personnel from the nearby bunker has been examined, nor even cited as a witness,” it said.
The Court observed that the explanation that people fled on seeing grenades was found to be “inconsistent” across witnesses and appeared “more an afterthought than a consistent circumstance.”
It also underscored that “in a case under the UAPA and Arms Act where the prosecution story hinges on recovery, non-joining of independent witnesses, when clearly possible, weigh against the prosecution”. There were serious lapses in handling the case property including failure to record identifying marks or numbers, preserve seal impressions, or maintain proper Malkhana records, the court said. While the court noted that there were contradictory versions on whether the grenades were sealed when presented to the bomb disposal squad, it said: “This contradiction prevents this Court from safely concluding that the grenades examined by the BD Squad are the same as those allegedly recovered from the accused at the Naka”. “Once the identity of the case property is not firmly established, expert opinion loses probative value,” it added. The court also found discrepancies on how the accused were apprehended, whether they tried to flee, were standing and called for search on suspicion, or had already been apprehended when another officer arrived.
On UAPA charges, the court observed that mere possession allegations were insufficient without proof of specific intention or nexus with terrorist activity.
While the court noted that the only material relied upon were alleged disclosure statements claiming association with banned outfit Al-Badr and transport of arms between Kulgam and Qamarwari, it said: “However, no recoveries followed, no suspect at Qamarwari was identified or arrested, and no call detail records, technical evidence, communication data, financial trail or other corroboration was produced”. With the conclusion that the prosecution failed to establish conscious and unauthorised possession of the alleged arms on October 10, 2022, the court held that the charge under Sections 7/25 of the Arms Act was not proved and extended the benefit of doubt to the accused.