By IANS
Mumbai : A special court Thursday sentenced six people, including two close aides of absconding key conspirator of the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts Tiger Memon, to jail ranging between five and 14 years for their role in smuggling of contraband explosives that were used in the bombings.
Among those sentenced by the special Terrorists and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA) court were father-and son duo Sharif Abdul Ghafoor Parkar, a close aide of Memon, and his son Mujib Parkar.
Sharif was sentenced on two counts under the TADA act – seven years rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs.50,000, and in default one more year in jail, and on the second count, 10 years in jail and a fine of Rs.50,000.
He was also given an enhanced sentence of 14 years rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs.200,000, and in default three years in jail.
He was found guilty for his role in the landing of weapons and RDX explosives at Shekhadi bridge in Raigad in Feb 3 and 9, 1993, that were used later in the Feb 23 bombings. He was the landing agent for the contraband. He was found guilty of bribing officials and police at Raigad to assist in the smuggling. He was given the enhanced sentence of 14 years as he was aware of the content of the contraband, but was absolved of conspiracy.
His son Mujib was given 5 years in jail and a Rs.25,000 fine and six months in default for supervising the landing of the arms and explosives.
Another close Memon aide, Dawood Mohammed Phanse, was sentenced to nine years in jail and a fine of Rs.25,000. He is also the son of Dawood Phanse, one of Memon's closest aides, who is absconding and one of the main conspirators who had supervised the smuggling of the explosives.
Another associate of Memon, Raju Jain, was sentenced to seven years in jail and a fine of Rs.100,000, and in default three years imprisonment. He had supplied three jeeps, fitted with special cavities, to smuggle the contraband. He had also bought a scooter and given it to Memon. The vehicle was later fitted with RDX and used in the Kanta Bazar blast, one of the 12 bombings in the city that claimed 257 lives and injured more than 700 people.
Two other people – Suleiman Ghoute and Syed Abdul Rehman – were sentenced to seven years in prison and Rs.25,000 each. They had driven the vehicles in which the contraband was loaded all the way to Mumbai.
Till Thursday, 28 of the 100 people who were convicted in the blasts have been sentenced by the court. Actor Sanjay Dutt has been asked to appear in court Friday.