This story is from February 17, 2019

‘We expect orders by next month’

‘We expect orders by next month’
Nearly 12 years later, the trial in Samjhauta Express blasts case is finally nearing completion. The trial is being held in the special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court in Panchkula.
The NIA has completed its arguments. Now, the defence has started its final arguments. Defence counsel Manvir Rathi thinks that they will be done in two to three hearings.
“We are expecting orders by next month,” adds Rathi.

Earlier, the court had directed 13 Pakistan nationals to record their statements, but till date they did not turn up. These Pakistani nationals were either travelling on the train on that fateful day or are the next of kin of those who died in the blasts.
The case had 299 witnesses, but statements of only 224 witnesses were recorded in the NIA court. The prosecution has given up on 53 witnesses, while nine witnesses died during trial. Also, a number of witnesses have turned hostile so far.
The blasts on Samjhauta Express train had taken place on February 18, 2007, killing 68 people, mostly Pakistanis. According to NIA chargesheet, the train was targeted, as Pakistani Muslims used to travel by it.

The NIA on June 20, 2011, had filed the charge sheet running into 1,500 pages against Swami Aseemanand and four others in the Panchkula NIA court. In the chargesheet, the agency had accused Aseemanand, Lokesh Sharma, Sunil Joshi (now dead), Sandeep Dange and Ramchandra Kalsangra alias Ramji, of murder, criminal conspiracy under Explosive Substances Act and Railways Act and others, which resulted in blasts in the cross-border train near Dewana railway station in Panipat district in February 2007. Majority of those killed in the blast were Pakistanis. Later, supplementary chargesheet was also filed against other accused.
NIA had submitted that the accused had attacked the train to take revenge on terror attacks on Hindu religious institutions — Akshardham (Gujarat), Raghunath Mandir (Jammu) and Sankat Mochan Mandir (Varanasi). But the defence had pleaded that the accused were falsely implicated in the case and alleged that the investigation agencies resorted to coercive methods, to make the accused ‘confess’.
According to NIA, “On February 19, 2007, Bharat Bhai and Sunil Joshi were watching TV at the resident of Bharat Bhai at Valsad, when the news about Samjhauta blast flashed. On watching the news, Joshi cheerfully said, “Achha hua, yeh kaam apne teacher alias Sandeep Dange aur uske ladko ka hai. Finally, usne kar hi diya.”
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About the Author
Rajinder Nagarkoti

Rajinder Nagarkoti is Principal Correspondent with The Times of India, Chandigarh. He covers Chandigarh Administration and CBI, NIA courts in Panchkula.

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