After over seven years in jail, court acquits two men of UAPA charges

More than seven years after two men were arrested and imprisoned under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, a Delhi court on Thursday acquitted them, noting that the prosecution had failed to prove its charges, reported Live Law.

Additional Sessions Judge Amit Bansal of Patiala House Courts also observed that there was a “great deal of doubt” about the Delhi Police recovering arms and ammunition from the accused, Jamsheed Zahoor Paul and Parvaiz Rashid.

Paul and Rashid were arrested under sections of the anti-terror law pertaining to conspiracy and being a member of a terrorist organisation. They were also charged with illegal possession of firearms or ammunition.

The first information report named two more persons: Asif Nazir Dar and Adil Wani. While Dar died in 2018 before being arrested, Wani remains absconding, reported The Hindu.

The prosecution had claimed that the police received intelligence input about certain persons from Jammu and Kashmir pledging allegiance to the terrorist group Islamic State and procuring weapons from Uttar Pradesh.

Acting on this information, the police arrested Paul and Rashid near Jama Masjid in Delhi on September 6, 2018. They allegedly recovered a pistol and five live cartridges from each of the men.

The police also alleged that the men were in contact with other suspected Islamic State operatives and had received funds to...

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