Aseemanand, 5 others acquitted in Ajmer shrine blast (Lead)

Jaipur March 8 (IANS) A court here on Wednesday acquitted RSS leader Swami Aseemanand and five others in the Ajmer Shrif Dargah blast of 2007.

The National Investigation Agency court convicted Bhavesh Patel Devendra Gupta and Sunil Joshi (now dead). Three persons were killed and at least 15 others injured when a bomb exploded at around 6.15 p.m. on October 11 2007 inside the premises of the shrine of Sufi Khawaja Moinuddin Chisti. Initially police had blamed Islamic terror groups for the blast but later a confession by Aseemanand shifted the focus of the probe towards Hindutva groups. Hearing in this case was completed in the first week of January in which 149 witnesses were examined and 451 documents were produced before the court. The court was due to announce the verdict on February 25 but had postponed it to March 8. --IANS as-mak/vd