2007 Hyderabad Twin Blasts: 2 Convicted, 3 AcquittedJust In

September 04, 2018 12:20
2007 Hyderabad Twin Blasts: 2 Convicted, 3 Acquitted

(Image source from: The Hindu)

Eleven years after the twin bombings in Hyderabad at Gokul Chat and Lumbini Park, which left 42 people dead and more than 50 people injured, a local court on Tuesday pronounced two of the accused - Aneeq Shafique Sayeed and Ismail Chaudhary - guilty.

Two others - Mohammed Sadiq and Ansar Ahmed Badshah Sheikh - have been acquitted. The quantum of punishment will be pronounced on Monday, September 10. The blasts were carried out by the banned outfit Indian Mujahideen (IM). The founders of IM, Riyaz, and Iqbal Bhatkal, are absconding.

The twin bombings happened 11 years ago, on August 25, 2007. Gokul Chat is located near the city's Koti area, and Lumbini Park is near the Secretariat on Tank Bund Road. More than 150 witnesses were questioned and cross-examined during the decade-long trial, the hearing for which concluded on August 7.

Since early morning on Tuesday, security was beefed up around Cherlapally Central Prison, where the accused are housed, and where the verdict was pronounced.

The verdict was delivered by Sessions Judge Srinivas Rao, who also delivered the verdict in other crucial cases like the Begumpet Task Force building bomb blast and the attack on Akbaruddin Owaisi.


During the blasts, at the popular eatery Gokul Chat around 32 people was killed and 47 sustained injuries. On the other hand, in a bomb blast at the open-air theatre, 12 others died and 21 left injured.

Aneeq Shafique Sayeed was claimed as one who allegedly planted the bomb at Lumbini Park, by the prosecution, while Riyaz Bhatkal was the one behind Gokul Chat bomb blast. The other bomb, the unexploded one, was planted by Ismail Chowdhari. Tarik Anjum was arrested for giving shelter to the other accused after the blasts.

The charge sheets under applicable provisions of Indian Penal Code (IPC) and sections of Explosive Substances Act were filed pursuing the twin blasts on August 25, 2007. The accused have also been charged for the recovery of an unexploded bomb from a foot overbridge at Hyderabad's Dilsuknagar area.

By Sowmya Sangam

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