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Malik, Bagri acquitted in Kanishka trial

     Vancouver: A Canadian judge on Wednesday acquitted the two suspects in Kanishka bombing trial saying that the evidence against them was not sufficient for conviction. The judgement came after a 20-year investigation and a 19-month trial into the Al-Quida's terror strikes of September 11, 2001, across USA. Ripudaman Singh Malik (59) and Ajaib Singh Bagri (55) were accused of bombing of an Air India plane in 1985, in which all 329 people on board were killed. While Malik was accused of financing the bomb plot, Bagri had charges on him for transplanting the bomb. The British Columbia Supreme Court Justice, Ian Josephson said that the key prosecution witnesses surfaced 'too late to be credible'. "The Crown has not proven its case against him beyond a reasonable doubt," Josephson was quoted as saying, when he acquitted Malik, a prominent member of western Canada's Sikh community. "The evidence has fallen remarkably short ... I find the Crown has not proved his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt," he said as he delivered his judgement against Bagri.

      Earlier, presenting the evidence, the prosecutors had said that the two accused built suitcase bombs on Vancouver Island, bought air tickets and planted the explosives on two flights from Vancouver. The two were arrested in 2000 and charged with eight charges of murder and conspiracy. The Canadian prosecutors said that the two explosions were the result of one conspiracy. They said that the Sikh separatists wanted to take a revenge for the raid conducted by Indian forces on the Golden Temple at Amritsar in 1984. Both orthodox Sikhs denied their involvement in the bombing of the aircraft. In 1992, the police in India killed Talwinder Singh Parmar, who was believed to be the mastermind. Another accused Inderjit Singh Reyat was sentenced to jail for five years in 2003, after he admitted that he had given his assistance in the making of bomb.

     The trial against the accused was circumstantial, with the exception of several confessions testified to by the key witnesses. The key witness against Bagri, a former member of a New York Sikh militant group who was paid $382,000 for his testimony said that Bagri had confessed to him in a New Jersey gas station. Standing in the witness box on March 21, 2004, he had testified Bagri as saying, "We did this" as they discussed the bombing. A woman who claimed that Malik and she were in love had also said that Malik had confessed to her several times. "Lawyers for the crown prosecution in Canada are stunned and shocked that the most expensive trial in Canadian history has ended in a not guilty verdict," the victim's lawyer, Sarwan Singh Rawan was quoted as saiying. To see the verdict Dozens of relatives of the victims had travelled across the world to Vancouver. Some started wailing. After the judgement was given, Malik and Bagri were immediately removed from the courtroom. Outside the court building, relatives and lawyers for the victims said they were stunned by the verdict, expressing that the verdict was a message for the other terrorists in Cannada that they could come up. One of the Kanishka bombing victims's son, David Hayer said, "After 20 years nobody has been held accountable for it and nobody has had to pay the price for this."

Parliament approves vote on account for Rail budget (Go To Top)

     New Delhi: The Parliament today approved the vote on account for Railways for the year 2005-06. The vote on account was approved after the Rajya Sabha returned the relevant Appropriation Bills with Railway Minister Lalu Prasad assuring the House that his ministry would take all measures to improve rail safety and step up development activities to meet demands of various states. Lalu's reply to the discussion on the Rail Budget was marred by protests by opposition NDA, which staged a walkout over the issue of "tainted" ministers in the UPA government.

Pappu Yadav to take oath on March 21 (Go To Top)

     New Delhi: The Supreme Court today allowed Rashtriya Janata Dal MP Pappu Yadav to take oath as a member of the Lok Sabha on March 21. Yadav, who was shifted to the Tihar Jail in the Indian capital a couple of weeks ago in connection with the Ajit Sarkar murder case, was however not granted permission to visit his Madhepura constituency in Bihar, where he is pretty regarded as the overlord. The apex court also directed the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHC) to depute a doctor to the Tihar Jail to examine Yadav's health. It asked the jail authorities to take appropriate steps in the event of the physician suggesting specific medical treatment.