Madhya Pradesh government scales up security of prison housing convicts of Ahmedabad bomb blasts

BHOPAL: The Madhya Pradesh government has set a high-level committee to review the security of Bhopal Central Jail, where six convicts of the 2008 Ahmedabad serial blasts lodged, and has also decided to deploy a squad of the special armed force to guard the prison, state Home Minister Narottam Mishra has said.

The six convicts lodged in the jail here include Safdar Nagori, the key conspirator of the Ahmedabad blasts.

Nagori was one of the 38 convicts sentenced to death in the Ahmedabad serial bomb blasts case by a Gujarat court last week.

A high-level committee has been constituted to monitor the security of the Bhopal Central Jail where the terrorists associated with the Ahmedabad blasts are lodged, Mishra said on Monday evening after a meeting with top police and jail officials.

The committee is headed by Additional Director General, jail department, Gajiram Meena, and also includes Deputy Inspector General Sanjay Pandey and Bhopal Central Jail Superintendent Dinesh Nargave, he said.

"The committee will review the security on a daily basis from all aspects, like people who want to meet these convicts, their food and security," said Mishra, who holds charge of the state jail department.

Also, Bhopal police commissioner has been directed to enhance monitoring and patrolling around the central jail, he said.

"In a bid to scale up the security, it is also decided to deploy a squad of the Special Armed Force (SAF) in the central jail," Mishra said.

The state Director General of Police will also keep a watch on the security through CCTVs, he said.

Senior officials can also talk to the central jail personnel through a hotline, he said.

Last week, a special court in Gujarat sentenced to death 38 convicts and handed life terms to 11 others in the case of 2008 Ahmedabad serial bomb blasts in which 56 people had lost their lives and over 200 were injured.

Nagori (54), a native of Madhya Pradesh's Ujjain district, was the general secretary of the banned Students' Islamic Movement of India (SIMI).

The other convicts in the case who are lodged in the Bhopal jail are Qumaruddin Nagori, Shivli, Shaduli, Amil Parvez, Hafiz, all sentenced to death, and Ansab, who was sentenced to life imprisonment till death.

These five convicts are in the age group of 35 to 50 years.

Three other accused lodged in the Bhopal Central Jail - Ahmed Beg, Yasin and Kamran - were acquitted in the case.

After hearing the verdict last week, Nagori had appeared remorseless and was heard saying the Constitution does not mean anything to him, according to officials.

He was accused of collecting funds for acquiring explosives and for other illegal activities of SIMI related to the Ahmedabad blasts.

Nagori, the son of a police assistant sub-inspector in Madhya Pradesh, is facing charges in nearly 100 criminal cases.