The tribunal set up under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, which is conducting hearings on the validity of the ban on Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), today had a sitting here with regard to the 2013 Sabarmati jail escape bid case.
Delhi High Court judge Suresh Kait presided over the hearing.
In February last year, the authorities at Sabarmati Jail here found a 26-ft-long tunnel, allegedly dug by the accused in the 2008 Ahmedabad serial blasts case, including Mufti Abubashar, Mohammad Ismail, Adeem Saiyed, Iqbal Sheikh, Mohammad Ansar Abdulrazzak, Shaduli Abdul Kalim, Shibli Abdul Kalim, Zahid Sheikh, Nasir Patel, Hafiz Mulla and others.
According to police they are SIMI members. Defense counsel Ashok Agrawal today cross-examined police inspector H R Rathod, who probed the tunnel case, on various aspects including possible involvement of jail staff and the findings of the report of the then DIG (Prison) Amit Vishwakarma.
Rathod admitted that jail officers did not visit the room where tunnel was being dug for several months. But on the finding of the Vishwakarma report that jail superintendent R J Parghi and other officials knew of the tunnel, Rathod said, "I cannot say they knew of the tunnel."
To the question on what basis the police concluded that the accused involved in the tunnel case were SIMI members, Rathod cited the chargesheet of the serial blasts case.
"I have not investigated the SIMI membership of these 24 accused persons. My claims are based on the investigation in the 2008 serial blasts case," the inspector added.
The second and final hearing would be held on Thursday.
