Lucknow: A court on Monday, August 5, sentenced 10 people to life imprisonment in the Gudri Bazaar triple murder case here, after a whopping 16 years of trial. Additional District Judge Pawan Kumar Shukla also imposed a fine of around ₹1.25 lakh on the convicts named Ijlal Qureshi, Afzal, Maharaj, Kallu alias Kalua, Ijhar, Munnu Driver alias Devendra Ahuja, Wasim, Rizwan, Badruddin, and Sheeba Sirohi. They are currently behind the bars.
A large contingent of police and PAC was deployed at the court during the proceedings. Nobody was allowed to enter without checking. Additional District Government Counsel Mukesh Mittal said that the court found the convicts guilty on Friday, August 2.
There are now two deceased suspects in the case: Israr and Majid. While Parvez's appeal is still pending in the Allahabad High Court, Shammi, another accused, is incarcerated and his trial is on.
The case began on May 23, 2008, when the bodies of three young people were discovered at Balaini, near the Hindon River, on the boundary between the districts of Baghpat and Meerut. They were recognized as Puneet Giri of Parikshitgarh Road, Sudhir Ujjwal of Sirsali, Baghpat, and Sunil Dhaka of Jagriti Vihar.
On the afternoon of May 23, 2008, dead bodies of three youths were found lying on the banks of the Balaini river on the border of Bagpat and Meerut districts. They were identified as Sunil Dhaka (27) resident of Jagriti Vihar, Meerut, Puneet Giri (22) resident of Parikshitgarh Road and Sudhir Ujjwal (23) resident of village Sirsali, Bagpat.
Police investigation revealed that on the night of May 22, all three were murdered in Gudri Bazaar of Kotwali by Haji Izlal Qureshi along with his brothers and companions. Police filed a charge sheet against 14 accused in this case. A case was filed against Sheeba for inciting murder.
On May 25, 2008, thousands of college students called for the closure of Meerut and established a non-political organization in protest of the killings. A massive police and PAC deployment coincided with an unprecedented shutdown that was witnessed by the whole district.
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