By TwoCircles.net Staff Correspondent,
Mumbai: Abrar Ahmed is one of the accused in the September 2006 Malegaon blast case. He turned approver but only to turn hostile later alleging he was being pressurized to give testimony against the rest eight Muslim accused in the case. Seemingly not ready to face the new turn in the case, Maharashtra Anti Terrorism Squad is reportedly pressurizing Abrar, and his family also, to again turn approver. Part of the tactic, some plain-clothed policemen yesterday brutally beat up his nephew who had gone to meet him in Byculla Central Jail.
Abrar turned hostile this April and through his brother Advocate Jaleel Ahmed filed an affidavit wherein he alleged that some officials were pressurizing him to give testimony against the accused in the case. In the affidavit he leveled serious charges against Rajwardhan, then Superintendent of Police (Nashik Rural), and few other police and Anti Terrorism Squad (ATS) officials. He alleged that SP Rajvardhan was involved in hatching the conspiracy to implicate Muslim youths. Soon after the affidavit, the police allegedly started putting pressure on him and his family to turn him approver again.
On June 1 Advocate Jaleel’s son Aftab Ahmed had gone to meet his uncle Abrar lodged in Byculla Central Jail in Nagpada, Mumbai. He was not allowed to meet him, and when he came out of the jail compound, some plain-clothed ATS men pounced on him and brutally beat him, says Urdu Times daily.
Advocate Jaleel, who had prepared his brother Abrar’s affidavit, has been quoted by the daily as saying: Yesterday my son went to meet his uncle Abrar Ahmad. Not allowed to meet, Aftab went out of the jail compound to the Clear Road where some policemen in plain clothes asked him whether he was son of advocate Jaleel. When Aftab said, ‘yes’ they started beating him and dragged him into a van. However, Aftab managed to get rid of them.
Jaleel alleged that since the affidavit was filed the police have been troubling Abrar to make him withdraw the affidavit. To put Abrar under pressure the relatives also are being threatened. Jaleel added that the policemen while beating Aftab were saying, ‘You and your father are daring Rajwardhan (SP). We won’t spare you.’
He also said that his son was so brutally beaten that he is not in a position to face his viva voce scheduled on June 3.
On September 8, 2006 Malegaon was shattered with a series of blasts taking place at Bada Qabrastan and Mushawarat Chowk on the day of Shab-e-Barat after Friday prayers. The explosions that claimed 31 lives and injured more than 250 persons were allegedly attributed to some alleged SIMI outfit. The ATS arrested nine Muslim youths and imposed MCOCA on them.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is conducting probe in the case and it is delaying submission of its report, reportedly due to a petition pending in the Supreme Court challenging the MCOCA against the accused.