New Delhi:
A Delhi court has convicted Shahzad Ahmad, a young man from Azamgarh in Uttar Pradesh, of opening fire at a police team to kill Delhi Police Inspector Mohan Chand Sharma in what is called the Batla House encounter, five years ago.
Shahzad was said to be in a flat in Jamia Nagar where the encounter took place between the officers of the Special Cell and the suspected Indian Mujahideen terrorists, who were allegedly involved in the September 13, 2008 serial blasts in Delhi. Explosions at Karol Bagh, Connaught Place, Greater Kailash and India Gate had left 26 dead and 133 injured.
Additional Sessions Judge Rajender Kumar Shastri had on July 20 reserved the judgement after final arguments by the prosecution and the defence.
The prosecution examined 70 witnesses, including six eye-witnesses who were part of the raiding team of Delhi Police Special Cell.
The prosecution had contended that it had sufficient circumstantial evidence and phone records to prove that Shahzad was present in the Jamia Nagar flat in Batla House and was among those who had fired at the police team leading to the death of Delhi Police inspector MC Sharma.
The counsel appearing for Shahzad had claimed that he was not present.
The defence had claimed that as per ballistic reports, the bullets found in the dead police officer's body matched the gun seized from the spot and not from the weapon which was allegedly retrieved from Shahzad's possession when he was arrested.