The Allahabad High Court acquitted five men previously sentenced to death or life imprisonment for the 2007 CRPF camp attack in Rampur, citing insufficient evidence.
The court said the prosecution “miserably failed to prove the case beyond reasonable doubt” against the accused.
Their sentences will account for the period already spent in custody, as per the High Court’s order.
Allahabad High Court Acquits Five In 2007 Rampur CRPF Camp Attack Case, Citing Lack Of Evidence
All five were, however, convicted under the Arms Act and sentenced to ten years of rigorous imprisonment, with ₹1 lakh fines each.
Summary
The Allahabad High Court on Wednesday overturned a trial court verdict that had sentenced four men to death and one to life imprisonment for their alleged involvement in the terrorist attack on a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) camp in Rampur district on the night of December 31, 2007. The attack had claimed the lives of eight CRPF personnel and injured five others.
A division bench comprising Justices Sidharth Verma and Ram Manohar Narain Mishra acquitted Mohd. Sharif, Sabauddin, Imran Shahjad, Mohd. Farooq, and Jang Bahadur Khan of murder and other serious charges, ruling that the prosecution “miserably failed to prove the case against the accused for the principal offence beyond reasonable doubt.”
However, the bench found all five men guilty under Section 25 (1-A) of the Arms Act and sentenced them to ten years of rigorous imprisonment.
In addition, the court imposed a fine of ₹1 lakh on each of the petitioners. “The period of imprisonment undergone by the appellants will be adjusted towards the above sentence awarded to the appellants,” the court said.
The five men had appealed against the verdict delivered by the Additional District and Sessions Judge of Rampur on November 1 and 2, 2019, which had convicted them and handed down the earlier sentences.
(with PTI inputs)
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