2007 train bombing: Indian court acquits 4 accused

NEW DELHI

A special court in India on Wednesday acquitted four accused in a case pertaining to 2007 train bombing in the country that killed 68 people, mostly from Pakistan, local media reported.

“The court has said that the NIA [National Investigation Agency] has not been able to establish any charges against the accused and hence all accused [Aseemanand, Lokesh Sharma, Kamal Chauhan and Rajinder Chaudhary] are acquitted,” daily The Hindu quoted Mukesh Garg, counsel of an accused, as saying.

Earlier, the special court of NIA dismissed the plea filed by a Pakistani woman in connection with the case, according to the daily.

Pakistani resident Rahila Wakil had filed the application on March 11 through advocate Momin Malik and sought permission for testimonies of Pakistani witnesses in the case.

The trial in the case had been ongoing since 2010 at the NIA court and about 224 witnesses out of total 299 testified before the court.

Meanwhile, Pakistan’s acting foreign secretary summoned the Indian high commissioner to lodge strong protest against the acquittal, according to a statement by Pakistan's Foreign Ministry.

"The acquittal of the accused today, 11 years after the heinous Samjhauta Terror Attacks makes a travesty of justice and exposes the sham credibility of the Indian Courts," the statement said.

The acting foreign secretary called on "India to explore judicial remedies to ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice", it added.

In February 2007, at least 68 people were killed, 44 of them were Pakistanis, in a bomb attack on Samjhauta Express, a cross-border train service between India and Pakistan.

Sunil Joshi, the alleged mastermind of the attack, was shot dead near his home in central Madhya Pradesh state in December 2007.

Three more suspects -- Ramchandra Kalsangra, Sandeep Dange and Amit -- could never be apprehended and were declared proclaimed offenders.

*Aamir Latif in Karachi contributed to this story.