Kerala Court Sentences Three Accused After They Plead Guilty In Kalamassery Bus Burning Case

A court in Kerala on Monday sentenced Thadiyantavida Nazeer, a suspected Lashkar-e-Taiba operative, and his accomplice to 7 years of rigorous imprisonment in the 2005 Kalamassery bus burning case while sentencing another accused in the case to 6 years imprisonment.

NIA Special Court Judge K Kamanees had convicted them last week after the trio admitted their guilt in the case. The sentence was imposed considering their guilty plea and their young age at the time of committing the crimes.

"The accused persons had been quite young at the time of perpetration of the crime. Their familial circumstances are also among other circumstances to weigh. There has to be a balancing between the aggravating circumstances and mitigating circumstances mentioned supra. The accused persons have volunteered to raise their plea to permit to plead guilty. No proscribed organisation has been seemed to be involved in the perpetration of the crime." 

In September 2005, a Tamil Nadu government-owned bus was set ablaze in retaliation to People's Democratic Party Chairman Madani's prolonged detention in the Coimbatore blast case. Five years later, the NIA booked 13 persons in the case, including prime accused Thadiyantavida Nazeer.

According to the NIA, a six-member group led by Nazeer boarded the said bus from the Ernakulam bus station. When the bus reached the Kalamassery municipal office, one of the accused pointed a gun at the driver and asked him to divert the bus towards an isolated place. When the bus reached the place, they asked the passengers to get down and set the bus on fire. One of the accused, Shafeeq, had turned approver in the case.

Three out of the 13 accused, (Nazeer, Sabir Buhari and Thajudin) voluntarily pleaded guilty to the crime which led to their conviction. Once the three accused entered their guilty pleas, the Judge ensured that this was done voluntarily and with full knowledge of the consequences.

"The charge has been again read over and explained to them. Before that, they were given sufficient time to interact with the lawyer of their choice Shri. Issac Sanjay, who had also explained to them the details and the consequences of charges and nature of punishment likely to be imposed on them. As a matter of fact, after the application was allowed, the accused persons had more than sufficient chances to reflect on their decision to have their guilt recorded." 

The Court found no reason to find that the guilty pleas were given on coercion.

"The accused persons appeared quite composed, calm and informed. They seem to have understood the nature of proceedings, contents of the charge and extent of punishment that is likely to be imposed on them. Their lawyer has also explained to them in detail inside the courtroom. The lawyer was present in the court when the accused persons were brought, he was again permitted to interact with the accused persons privately."

The Court then proceeded to hear them on the question of imposing sentences. The three convicts then spoke of having to take care of their families, while Nazeer and Thajudin pointed out that they had both been in jail for the last 12 years and had not seen their children the whole time.

Therefore, though the accused were convicted for several offences, the Court held that they should run concurrently with the sentence under Sections 16(1)(b) and 18 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) being the longest at 7 years rigorous imprisonment.

It was also pointed out that one of the co-accused was recently convicted of the same crime and sentenced to a maximum of 6 years. However, the prosecution pointed out that the said co-accused did not have any previous convictions as opposed to Nazeer and Buhari whose convictions and sentence in the Kashmir terror recruitment case were recently upheld by the Kerala High Court.

For the charges under UAPA which carries a minimum sentence of 5 years, the Court awarded 7 years rigorous imprisonment to Nazeer and Buhari and 6 years to Thajudin.

"Considering the facts and circumstances of the case and also considering the fact that no proscribed organisation had been involved in the perpetration of the crime, I find that the accused persons Shri. Nazeer Thadiyantavidatha (A1) and Shri. Sabir Buhari (A5) can be sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for a term of 7 years each under those counts. They shall also pay a fine at the rate of Rs.50,000/- each for those offences. Default sentences will follow. In case of Shri. Thajudin (A7), he can be sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for a term of 6 years each under those counts. He shall also pay a fine at the rate of Rs.25,000/- each for those offences. Default sentences will follow."

For the offence of criminal conspiracy under Section 120B of the Indian Penal Code, Nazeer and Buhari got 7 years and Thajuddin, 5 years.

All three were also convicted and sentenced under Sections 121A, 364, 323, 506(ii), 435 of the IPC and under Section 4 of Damage to Public Property Act, 1984. Fines and default sentences were imposed on the accused under each offence.

The punishment of seven years imprisonment will be set off for all the three accused considering the number of years they have already spent in jail.

The accused were represented by Advocate Issac Sanjay while Senior Public Prosecutor Arjun Ambalapatta appeared for NIA. 

Case Title: Union of India v Nazeer Thadiyantavidatha @ Ummer Haji & Ors.

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