In a letter to the Chief Justice of India, investigative reporter Ashish Khetan has stated that different investigating agencies across India produced different versions of same terror cases and altered the evidence to suit their version.
At least in 3 cases prosecuted by ATS Maharashtra—July 11, 2006 Mumbai local train blasts, 2006 Malegaon blasts and Pune German Bakery case of February 2010—ATS deliberately created bogus evidence, extracted false confessions, planted explosives in the houses of the accused and implicated innocent youth, read the letter.
Khetan has uploaded the interaction he had with some of accused in the 7/11blastcaseonhiswebsite,www.gulail.com. Interestingly, these interviews were conducted in the court premises. Khetan said the ATS officials often tried to bribe the accused.
“The interview was conducted in the court premises with a spy camera. Accused Ehtasham Siddiqui, Majid Mohammed, Kamal Ansari and Naved Khan have alleged that they were lured by ATS officials to become approvers. They were offered Rs 25 lakh,” said Khetan.
In the interview, the accused claimedthatthecopsofferedthemjobs but they declined. Khetan was also informed that the then ATS chief K P Raghuvanshi asked the accused to help police convict others. “The accused signed the confession when they were threatened of dire consequences,” he said. On the website, he has also categorically pointed out various loopholes in the investigation.
Meanwhile, in the letter to the CJI, Khetan has stated that in the 7/11 case, a chargesheet was filed against 13 suspects belonging to Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI). As many as 15 others were named as absconding on December 1, 2006. The accused included various professionals.
In2008,however,fresharrestswere made and Indian Mujahideen (IM) claimed responsibility for all attacks between 2005 and 2008. It led to the arrest of Sadiq Sheikh by Crime Branch, the letter stated. The confessions by Sheikhandothersclearlyshowthatthe people earlier prosecuted by the ATS had no connection with the local train bombings of 2006.
“These confessions contain a meticulously detailed description of more than eight terror strikes that Sheikh andhisaccompliceshadallegedlyplotted and executed since 2003. But curiously,Sheikhandhisaccompliceswere chargesheeted in only those blast cases in which the investigation was still not completed. Hyderabad blasts of 2007, Ahmedabad and Surat blasts of 2008 and Delhi blasts of 2008 were some of the cases in which the IM members were chargesheeted,” said the letter.
“Revelations regarding any blast before 2007 were ignored because those cases were claimed to have been solved. Sheikh and a few others were discharged in 2009, as ATS claimed they did not have enough evidence against them,” said Khetan.
Hillele 