Ahmad Murtaza Abbasi gets death penalty for Gorakhnath attack

New Delhi, January 30

After a 60-day trial, a Special Court in Lucknow on Monday awarded the death penalty to Ahmad Murtaza Abbasi convicted in the Gorakhnath Temple attack case.

Special Judge Vivekanand Sharan Tripathi of the Anti-Terror Squad Court, which found Abbasi guilty of waging or attempting to wage war or abetting waging of war against the government and attempting to murder under Sections 121 and 307 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) on Saturday, pronounced the sentence on Monday.

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Describing Abbasi as a part of ISIS and a master of terror-funding, Uttar Pradesh Director General of Police (DGP) Devendra Singh Chauhan said the conviction was the result of efforts of the UP ATS and UP ATS Prosecution.

Abbasi had attacked PAC constable Anil Kumar Paswan and tried to snatch weapons from him. When other security personnel came to Paswan’s rescue, Abbasi attacked them as well injuring two constables with a sickle.

A chemical engineer, Abbasi was arrested after security personnel overpowered him.

The police alleged Abbasi had been trained by ISIS and he had also gone to Nepal and was influenced by the ideology of the terror outfit. The police had seized weapons, laptops and jihadi literature and inciting audio and videos from his possession. He had allegedly taken the oath of fighting for the IS. (With agency inputs)