BOMBAY/NEW DELHI, 12 October 2006 — Top police officials in the western Indian state of Maharashtra have launched an investigation into allegations of torture and brutality by local police investigating the July 11 bombings in the state capital, Bombay, media reports said yesterday.
Maharashtra police chief P.S. Pasricha was asked by State Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh to look into the charges after the suspects and their relatives filed affidavits with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s office, the Indian Express daily reported.
Among the accusations lodged against the police were tying suspects to the floor and beating them with belts and sticks, beating them in front of relatives, kicking them and parading them around naked.
Relatives — including those of the alleged kingpins, Faisal and Muzammil Sheikh — alleged that police held women and elderly relatives hostage to extract confessions from the accused or to ensure the arrests of suspects. “I recently received the affidavits,” Pasricha told the newspaper. “It needs a thorough probe. I cannot say anything about it unless I have looked into the matter in detail.” All suspects arrested in connection with the bombings of Bombay trains that killed nearly 200 people are Indian Muslims.
According to the Express, a delegation of eight Muslim parliamentarians met Deshmukh recently, following which the Bombay police were instructed not to harass the Muslim community.
Meanwhile, Judge P.D. Kode of the Special Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Act (TADA) court yesterday found two aides of prime accused Tiger Memon and two farmers of Raigad guilty in the 1993 Bombay blasts case.
Suleman Mohammed Kasim Ghawate was found guilty of participating in the conspiracy by transporting arms, ammunitions and RDX explosives from Raigad district to Panvel in New Bombay.
Another accused Yusuf Khan was charged with transporting arms, ammunitions and explosives, but was cleared of the charges of participating in conspiracy due to lack of evidence.
Rashid Ahmed Aluware and Abdul Aziz Gharatkar, the two farmers, were charged with involvement in the blasts.
