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A Delhi court has granted regular bail to one of the accused in the 1996 Lajpat Nagar bomb blast case. The accused was arrested 28 years after the blast incident. He was declared a proclaimed offender on February 19, 1997, and was arrested on July 9, 2024.
On May 21, 1996, a powerful bomb blast took place in Lajpat Nagar Marke, killing more than a dozen people and leaving several others injured. The Jammu and Kashmir Islamic Front (JKIF) had taken responsibility for the blast. Additional Sessions Judge Hardeep Kaur granted bail to Mehrajuddin Bhatt, alias Juber. He was granted bail on Tuesday, July 23. The court has imposed several conditions, including that the accused shall not leave the country without the permission of the court. On being asked, the IO informed the court that nothing incriminating has come on record in the examination of two co-accused, namely Faridabad Dar alias Behenji and Latif Ahmed Waza. His name appeared in the disclosure statement of these two co-accused. Accused Mehrajuddin has been a permanent employee of the Institute of Management and Public Administration, Natipora, since 1989. The court noted that on April 8, 2010, accused Farida Dar was acquitted of the charge of conspiracy and Latif Ahmed Waza was acquitted of all the charges. Advocate Kartik Venu appeared for accused Mehrajuddin. It was submitted that the accused is innocent and is not at flight risk. He has been an employee of a government institution since 1989. It was also submitted that he was alleged to be part of the conspiracy. His name appeared in the disclosure statements of Faridabad Dar and Latif Ahmed Waza. The accused is in no position to hamper the investigation, as all the evidence is documentary. In this case, initially, an FIR was registered at police station Lajpat Nagar. Later on, the investigation was transferred to the special cell. In this case, out of 17 accused, four were convicted, six were acquitted, six were declared proclaimed offenders, and one accused has already expired. (ANI)
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