Man Acquitted in Mumbai Case After Being on Death Row for 2013 Hyderabad Terror Attack

Aijaz Shaikh is currently imprisoned in Hyderabad. Special MCOCA judge BD Shelke recently acquitted him due to lack of evidence.

However, the detailed order is not yet available. Shaikh, who previously worked in a BPO and is known for being tech-savvy, was arrested by the Mumbai Crime Branch in February 2015 in connection with a terror mail case.

The case was registered in 2010 after a threatening email was sent to the United Kingdom-based BBC news channel warning of terror strikes in the national capital. The police suspected the email was sent from south Mumbai and focused on Shaikh, who is accused of sending it from his mobile phone.

He was charged with forgery for obtaining a SIM card in someone else’s name and using it for sending the threat mails. Advocate Hasnain Kazi, representing Shaikh, argued that the IP address mentioned in the FIR belonged to Norway, and no expert witness was examined to prove that the email was sent from Mumbai.

Kazi also contended that Shaikh was made a scapegoat due to the failure of the investigating authority to trace the true accused. In addition to the terror mail case, Shaikh is also facing trials in the July 2011 serial explosions in Zaveri Bazar, Opera House, and Kabutar Khana, which resulted in the deaths of 21 people.

*(Please note that except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed. )*