Suspect in Red Fort attack case gets bail

NEW DELHI: A Delhi court on Wednesday granted bail to Bilal Ahmed Kawa, an LeT suspect arrested in the 2000 Red Fort attack case, noting that all other co-accused have either been acquitted or discharged and they had “more charges” against them. Additional Sessions Judge Sidharth Sharma observed that the other accused acquitted or discharged by the trial court and the Delhi high court, were facing more serious charges than Kawa.
The court granted the relief to Kawa on furnishing of a personal bond of Rs 50,000 and a surety of the same amount, and directed him not to hamper the probe.Kawa was arrested from Terminal-3 of IGI airport on January 10, during a joint operation by Delhi Police and Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), and currently was in judicial custody. In his bail plea, Kawa claimed that no purpose would be served by keeping him in custody further.
Bilal, who is a suspect in the 2000 Red Fort attack case, was earlier sent to 10-day police custody by the court. The court took note of the allegation that Kawa had received Rs 29.5 lakh from Pakistan to fund the terror attack on Red Fort on December 22, 2000. Three people, including two Army jawans, were killed in the December 22, 2000 Red Fort attack. A trial court had in October 2005 awarded death sentence to Pakistan-based LeT terrorist Mohammad Arif alias Ashfaq, while two others — Nazir Ahmed Qasid and his son Farooq Ahmed Qasid — were awarded life imprisonment.