IISc terror attack: Life term for 5 accused upheld by Karnataka High Court

BENGALURU: The Karnataka High Court on Tuesday has upheld the conviction of five accused, who were sentenced to life imprisonment in connection with the shootout at Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bengaluru on December 28, 2005, which killed Prof Manish Chandra Puri of IIT Delhi and injured four others. It was the first ever terror attack in Bengaluru.

A division bench, headed by Justice Mohan M Shantanagoudar, upheld the conviction of Mohammed Riaz-ur-Rehman, Afzar Pasha, Noorulla Khan, Mohammed Irfan and Nazim Uddin alias Munna with life imprisonment for criminal conspiracy, waging war against the country and under provisions of the Explosives Act. Whereas, another accused Mehboob Ibrahim Saab Chopdar was acquitted for want of evidence.

However, Ibrahim Saab Chopdar was convicted under provisions of the Explosives Act will have to undergo seven years imprisonment along with Rs 5,000 as fine.

The city’s Second Fast Track Court, in December 2011, had convicted six extremists to life imprisonment for waging a war against the nation. All the six were alleged of having links with terrorist outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba. They were arrested by the city police in 2006.

The Fast Track Court had cross examined 73 witnesses, including the retired DG & IGP Ajai Kumar Singh, who was the then City Police Commissioner, and the then Home Secretary, Bipin Gopalakrishna. On December 28, 2005, two people entered the IISc campus, in a car and opened fire. Later seven people were arrested in January 2006.