NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Thursday reduced the death penalty of Ariz Khan, the convict in the 2008 Batla House encounter, to life imprisonment while partly upholding the earlier trial court's conviction against him.
Khan has been awarded the death penalty by the trial court for the murder of Delhi Police Inspector Mohan Chand Sharma in connection with the sensational 2008 encounter case which was allegedly associated with the Indian Mujahideen.
A Division Bench of Justice Siddharth Mridul and Amit Sharma delivered the judgment which modified the trial court order.
"In view of the ongoing discussion, Judgement of conviction is UPHLED. The sentence of death imposed by is however not confirmed. The order dated March 15 is modified to that extent. The appeal is allowed in part," the court ordered.
In 2021 March, while noting the offence against Khan under the "rarest of rare" category, the trial court awarded him capital punishment.
Following the trail of investigation of the serial blasts that rocked Delhi in September 2008 in which 30 people were killed and more than 100 injured, the Special Cell of Delhi Police, a week later, carried out an armed operation to arrest terrorists of the Indian terror outfit Indian Mujahideen who were hiding in a flat at the Batla House area of Jamia Nagar, Okhla in Delhi.
When a 7-member police team reached the Batla house in the morning hours of September 19, 2008, they came under heavy fire from the terrorists which led to the said encounter.
In the encounter, two terrorists -- Atif Amin and Mohammad Sajid -- were neutralised by the police while one police officer, Mohan Chand Sharma, who had received a bullet injury, succumbed during treatment at a hospital. During the encounter, Shehzad Ahmed and Ariz Khan managed to escape but were later caught. Ariz Khan was 24 years old then.
Following is the chronology of events of the 2008 Batla House encounter case.
-- September 13, 2008: Serial blasts rock New Delhi killing 39 people and injuring 159.
-- September 19: Encounter takes place between police and terrorists, FIR lodged.
-- July 3, 2009: Ariz Khan and Shahzad Ahmad declared proclaimed offenders by trial court.
-- February 2, 2010: Shahzad Ahmad is arrested from Lucknow.
-- October 1: Investigation of the case transferred to the Crime Branch of Delhi Police.
-- July 30, 2013: Indian Mujahideen terrorist and co-accused Shahzad Ahmad was awarded life imprisonment by trial court.
-- February 14, 2018: Ariz Khan arrested after being on the run for a decade.
-- March 8, 2021: Ariz Khan convicted of murder and other offences by trial court.
-- March 15, 2021: Trial court awards death penalty to Ariz Khan, imposes Rs 11 lakh fine.
-- January 10, 2022: HC issues notice to police on appeal by Ariz Khan against the trial court orders of conviction and sentence.
-- March 7, 2022: HC issues notice to Khan on the death reference about whether to confirm the capital punishment.
-- August 18, 2023: HC reserves its verdict on confirmation of the death penalty awarded to Ariz Khan in the case.
--October 12, 2023: HC upholds the conviction of Khan for killing decorated police inspector Mohan Chand Sharma but commutes the death penalty to life term.
READ HERE:
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(With inputs from PTI)
