Convicts’ relatives will approach High Court

Mumbai: The quantum of punishment handed out in Mumbai’s serial local train blasts case is one of the historical judgments made wherein five people have been sentenced to death. However, after conviction, the accused plan to move to high court to challenge this order.

One of the convicts, Mohammed Ali, for whom the prosecution had sought death sentence, but the court awarded him life imprisonment said, “We are not satisfied with this judgment. The defence produced a lot of evidence to prove our innocence, but the court did not accept them for reasons better known to the judge. We will challenge this judgment in the High Court.”

Ehtesham Siddiqui, who has been given the death sentence said, “I do not wish to say anything which would amount to contempt of court, but all I can say is that we are not satisfied with the judgment and will file an appeal against it in the High Court.”

Another convict Naveed Khan who is also on death row said, “After conviction we were expecting this kind of sentence, but we still have faith in judiciary and I believe that we will get justice from higher court. This verdict is not right. We will challenge it in the high court,” said Asif Khan who has been handed the death sentence.

Also, his friend Raees Ahmed said, “Asif has two daughters and one son. He was the only earning member of the family and since his arrest, the family has been facing extreme financial problems and hence I have been paying for his children’s education and a few other friends contribute Rs 5,000 monthly for the family’s daily expenses.”

Majid’s wife Farzana who had came all over from Kolkata, said, “We did not get justice. My husband and others all innocent people were made scapegoat by the government and the police to hide their inability to solve the blast case. We are disappointed with court’s verdict. However, we will continue our legal battle for their release.”

Zameer’s brother Sharif Ahmed said, “From arrest, to adducing false evidence and till the court’s announcement of the sentence, everything has been done at the instance of the government and police.”