Lucknow Terror Conspiracy Case: Allahabad HC Grants Relief To Alleged Al-Qaeda Terrorist

The Allahabad High Court recently granted bail to an alleged al-Qaeda terrorist who was arrested in connection with a plot to carry out a pressure cooker bombing in Lucknow in the year 2021.

Previously, the special NIA court had denied his bail application.

A division bench of Justice Attau Rahman Masood and Justice Saroj Yadav passed this order on the bail plea moved by the accused Mohd. Moeed.

The High Court granted bail to his two co-accused last month due to the gravity of their ‘unblemished’ past antecedent and the gravity of the offences for which the trial is framed.

Basically, the ATS detained Minhaj and Bashiruddin in July 2021 on suspicion that they conspired to carry out a pressure cooker bomb attack in Lucknow on August 15, 2021, as part of the Operation Ansar Gajwatul Hind organization. Subsequently, the NIA took over the investigation.

Minhaj Ahmad was radicalized online by two Al Qaida terrorists located in Jammu and Kashmir, according to the NIA’s case against them. Along with the other accused, he had formed a plot to carry out terrorist activities and continue recruiting people for the AGH (Ansaar Gajwatul Hind), an Al-Qaeda wing.

He recruited one Museeruddin into the Al Qaida fold and conspired with him to carry out terrorist activities in Uttar Pradesh. In order to wage war against the Indian Government, Museeruddin and Minhaj Ahmad acquired weapons, ammunition, explosive material, and conducted reconnaissance of vulnerable sites for carrying out blasts.

Shakeel, Mohd. Mustaqeem, and Mohammad Moeed, the other three accused, helped Minhaj and Museeruddin acquire guns and ammunition, becoming a party to the conspiracy in the process.

Following the investigation in the case, a charge sheet was presented before the special court, and upon assessment of the information gathered during the inquiry, charges under Section 120B IPC and Section 25 (1B)(a) Arms Act were framed against them.