Mumbai, February 24: Maharashtra Samajwadi Party chief and MLA Abu Azmi backed Congress MP Imran Masood's remarks on Tuesday that authorities must ensure "innocent people" are not arrested. Masood's remarks came after the police crackdown on an alleged terror conspiracy involving eight suspects believed to have links with Pakistan's ISI and radical groups based in Bangladesh.
Supporting Masood's statement, Azmi alleged that members of the Muslim community were being "deliberately targeted" in the country. His comments came a day after Masood stressed the need for caution when taking action against terror suspects.
"I am not sure who has been arrested. People may spend 20 years in jail and then be released. There is no doubt that strict action is needed against terror, but innocent people should not be arrested. Ensure that those released after long sentences are not wrongly targeted," Masood had told IANS.
Sharing the same view, Azmi told IANS, "He is absolutely right, and I support him. In the Mumbai serial blast case, 12 youths were arrested and were handed the death penalty by a lower court. The High Court acquitted them, but even then, the government took the case to the Supreme Court."
"In the Malegaon blast case, Purohit Pandey and others were convicted, but the government lawyer was instructed to go easy on them. They were later acquitted, and no further appeals were made," he further said.
"This clearly shows the condition of this country. Muslims are deliberately targeted," Azmi added.
The political reactions followed the arrest of eight individuals from different locations in Tamil Nadu and West Bengal for allegedly plotting a major terror conspiracy at the direction of Pakistan's ISI and Bangladesh-based radical organisations.
On Saturday, security agencies also issued an alert about a possible explosion near Delhi's Red Fort after intelligence inputs suggested that the Pakistan-based terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba had drawn up a list of high-profile locations to target in India.
Sources said the coordinated security operation was launched after specific intelligence inputs were received about a suspected terror module planning activities across various parts of the country.
During the raids, police seized several mobile phones and SIM cards from the accused. These devices are currently being examined to determine the extent and reach of the network.
The developments come in the backdrop of a car explosion near the Red Fort on November 10, in which 13 people were killed, and more than 20 others sustained injuries.