2015 Bengaluru terror plot: Prime accused gets life sentence

Bengaluru: A special court in Bengaluru sentenced Syed Ismail Afaaque, the prime accused in a 2015 terror conspiracy case, to life imprisonment under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA). 

On December 16, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) special court convicted three Bhatkal residents—Syed Ismail Afaaque, Abdul Sabur, and Saddam Hussain—for plotting terror attacks ahead of then-US President Barack Obama’s visit to India in 2015. The court pronounced the quantum of punishment on December 23. 

The court sentenced Afaaque to life imprisonment and Sabur and Hussain to simple imprisonment of 10 years.  Afaaque was convicted under several sections of the UAPA and IPC Section 120B (criminal conspiracy). He was also ordered to pay a fine of Rs 1.55 lakh. Sabur and Hussain were convicted under IPC sections 120B and 121A. They were also ordered to pay a fine of Rs 25,000 each. 

The conspiracy was unearthed by Bengaluru police’s Central Crime Branch (CCB) during a probe into the 2014 Church Street blast case, which left one woman dead. 

A senior police officer who oversaw the investigation said that the three men were associated with the banned outfit Indian Mujahideen (IM) and were previously part of the Students’ Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) and the Popular Front of India (PFI). 

According to the officer, there were nine accused in the case. Two of them — Riyaz Ahmed and Zainul Abidin — were acquitted, while four are absconding.