Al-Umma founder, 12 others held guilty in 98 Coimbatore blast case (Lead: Crime-Coimbatore Blast-Update)

A Session Court here today held Syed Ahmed Basha, the founder of the Al-Umma and 12 others guilty of conspiring and transporting bombs in the 1998 Coimbatore serial bomb blasts case.

Coimbatore, Aug. 1 : A Session Court here today held Syed Ahmed Basha, the founder of the Al-Umma and 12 others guilty of conspiring and transporting bombs in the 1998 Coimbatore serial bomb blasts case.

However, the court acquitted Abdul Nasser Madani, the leader of the Kerala-based People's Democratic Party.

Special Court Judge K Uthirapathy found Basha, AL-Umma General Secretary Mohammad Ansari and 11 other Al-Umma activists guilty of criminal conspiracy.

The court will pronounce the quantum of sentence from August 6.

The verdict came nine years after the 12 blasts that rocked the city on February 14, 1998 in which 58 people were killed and over 200 were injured. The blasts were targeted at a venue where senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader L K Advani was scheduled to address a meeting.

In April 2000, a Special Court was formed to try the cases, and in the same year (October), charges were framed.

The trial started in March 2002, and has till date examined 1,300 witnesses out of a total of 2,345.

The arguments began in June 2006 and ended on April 10, 2007.

The Special Investigation Team of Tamil Nadu Crime Branch-Criminal Investigation Department, which probed the cases, has argued that "Operation Allahu-Akbar", was part of a conspiracy to eliminate Advani.

ANI