Bombay High Court dismisses plea of man acquitted in 26/11 terror case for police clearance to ply autorickshaw

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Wednesday dismissed a petition filed by Faheem Ansari, acquitted in the 26/11 terror attacks case, seeking a police clearance certificate (PCC) to drive an autorickshaw for his livelihood.

A bench of Justices A S Gadkari and Ranjitsinha Bhonsale, while dismissing the plea, said the certificate was rightly refused by the authority concerned.

A detailed order copy would be made available later.

Ansari filed the petition in January last year after his application for the mandatory PCC required for an RTO badge and permit was rejected.

Authorities had informed him via an RTI response that the certificate could not be issued due to allegations of his association with the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terror outfit.

In September last year, the government, while opposing Ansari's plea, said he was still under surveillance, justifying the rejection of the certificate.

In his petition, Ansari contested the decision as "arbitrary, illegal and discriminatory," arguing that his fundamental right to livelihood was being violated.

Ten Pakistani terrorists launched a series of coordinated attacks at vital places in the city, including the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, the Taj and Oberoi hotels in south Mumbai, on November 26, 2008.

As many as 166 persons lost their lives and several others were injured in the attacks that lasted around 60 hours.

Nine of the terrorists were killed.

In May 2010, a special court convicted Ajmal Kasab, the lone Pakistani terrorist captured alive during the attacks, but acquitted the two Indian men accused in the case - Faheem Ansari and Sabauddin Ahmed - noting a lack of evidence.

The two were accused of being co-conspirators, aiding and abetting LeT in conducting the dastardly attacks. The Bombay High Court and the Supreme Court later upheld their acquittal.

Ansari was, however, convicted and sentenced to 10 years' jail in another case in Uttar Pradesh. He was released from jail after serving the sentence.

In his petition, Ansari said his application for the certificate was refused on the grounds that he was accused of being a member of a terrorist outfit.

"The petitioner is legally entitled to engage in gainful employment, free from any legal blemish or barriers," the plea had said.

Just because he was tried in the 26/11 terror attacks case, it cannot act as a blanket ban that disentitles him from availing job opportunities, especially when he has been acquitted by all courts, it said.

Ansari sought a direction to the authorities to issue him a police clearance certificate.

As per the plea, after being released from jail in 2019, Ansari secured a job at a printing press in Mumbai, but it shut down during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Thereafter, he got a job at a printing press in Mumbra in the neighbouring Thane district. However, since the income was low, he applied for a three-wheeler autorickshaw license, which he got on January 1, 2024.

Ansari subsequently applied for the PCC, which is mandatory for plying an autorickshaw for commercial purposes.

When he did not receive any response, Ansari filed an application under the Right to Information Act (RTI), and was informed that the certificate could not be issued to him as he was accused of being a member of LeT.

According to the prosecution, Ansari and Ahmed had prepared maps of the city and handed the same to the alleged conspirators and masterminds of the attack in Pakistan.

The sessions court, while acquitting them, however, had noted that better maps were available online.