Terror acquittal: But five years lost to prove his innocence

Mohammad Iftekhar Ahsan Mallick (26), former B.Sc. (Bio-tech) student

By Mahtab Alam, TwoCircles.net,

Late night on March 7, 2005, Mohammad Iftekhar Ahsan Mallick, a B.Sc. (Bio-tech) II year student at Dehradun’s Dolphin Institute of Biomedical & Natural Sciences was preparing for his final examinations at his friend’s place. But he had to face ‘greater’ exam that was to last for five years.

Around midnight, some unidentified people with guns forced their way into his friend’s house and took him away, without informing who they were and what they wanted? At first instance, Iftekhar thought that it is kidnapping but later he was told that his kidnappers were actually Delhi Police’s Special Cell who were taking him to Delhi for ‘questioning’ regarding his ‘role’ in a terror plan. He was severely tortured during the police custody and made to sign ‘confessional’ statements.

Torture is still etched in his mind and he rather not talks about it. Iftekhar pleaded his innocence but was made to suffer. He also appealed for speedy trial but even then it took five long years.

Iftekhar was jailed on the charges of being a Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorist plotting to carry out a suicide attack on the Indian Military Academy (IMA) in Dehradun. The Special Cell claimed to have recovered a diary containing ‘inflammatory’ passages from the Quran, which talks about taking revenge of 2002 Gujarat carnage and a pass to an IMA parade. Police also claimed, Iftekhar had been in touch with the Pakistani terrorist Shams, who motivated him to attend Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) meetings in his native town and his name was referred as “Shahid” in Shams’ diary and that the Lashkar had sponsored his education. But Delhi Court refused to believe prosecution stories and Iftekhar was ordered to be released.

After almost five years of imprisonment, on January 8, 2010 Additional Sessions Judge Dharmesh Sharma ordered his release.

“January 2010, not only proved a real New Year for me but brought a new life in real sense for me”, Iftikhar told TwoCircles.net.

Now, he is all set to start his studies once again and will be soon enrolling himself in Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) in Bihar. “The entire period is full of nightmarish experiences but I want to begin a new life, a respectful life”, he asserts. But he doesn’t want to move out of Bihar as his family is afraid. Iftekhar, who was always hopeful about his acquittal confessed, “no matter how much I try to forget all this, how can I forget those golden years”. He asks painfully “Who will return those five years and how?”

Talking to TwoCircles.net he said there seems to be some planning to malign Muslims and therefore youths are falsely accused of terrorism charges and are made to rot in jail for years. But he has not completely lost faith in the system and suggests Muslims and secular Indians to come forward to make a platform that can fight for justice by preventing abuse of innocent Muslims.

(with Video and Photo by TwoCircles.net Patna Correspondent Manzar Bilal)