Terror suspect claims bid to frame him, court seeks report

Mumbai: A special NIA court on Wednesday called for a detailed report after a terror case accused moved an urgent plea saying a woman claiming to be from the Army and a Colonel rank officer visited his home in Kalyan on Feb 21 with a suspicious proposal to "wipe out" his pending criminal case in exchange for his "help".The judge, Chakor S Baviskar, directed the prosecution (NIA) and Bazar Peth police in Kalyan to file their replies by March 4. The accused in the 2015 Islamic State recruitment case, Areeb Majeed, who has been facing trial for 11 years, called the incident "deeply disturbing". He is out on bail and pursuing a law degree. In his plea, Majeed said while he was at college, his wife told him that a woman and a man had arrived at home demanding entry. In a call, the woman claimed to be with the Army and that she was accompanied by a Colonel. Recognising that executive authorities cannot legally dismiss cases pending before a special court, Majeed said he became suspicious and contacted police and NIA. He said he refused to allow the duo entry into his home. According to the plea, the woman said Majeed would be recruited to speak to individuals abroad using a special phone to be provided by her and the Colonel. It said he "reasonably apprehends" that were he to accept such a proposal, it could later be used to allege that he was in contact with foreign individuals. "Given the pendency of the present case, any such engineered communication could severely prejudice the applicant (Majeed). The applicant, therefore, refused any such proposal and immediately informed authorities." Majeed said when he came home and demanded identification, the woman admitted she had none, while the man briefly flashed an ID card but refused to let his credentials be verified. He said he took photos of both, and sent a written complaint to NIA in Mumbai and Delhi as well as senior police officials enclosing call logs and the photos.The plea said the visitors were taken to Bazar Peth police station, where Majeed was summoned to the cabin of a senior officer and pressured to delete the photos. Subsequently, an NIA officer allegedly instructed him not to pursue action. Majeed alleged he was told that the two visitors were "senior officers involved in clandestine operations" whose identities could not be questioned.The court ordered that the NIA officer be issued a notice.