Mumbai: A special TADA court hearing the 1993 Mumbai blasts case has held as guilty Mohammad Shoaib Kasam Ghansar on charges of conspiracy and murder. Ghansar was the mastermind of the Zaveri Bazaar blast and had parked a scooter laden with explosives in the bazaar that exploded and killed 17 people. He is currently lodged in jail. The prosecution is likely to plead for death sentence for Ghansar. "Mohammad Ghansar, accused of masterminding the Zaveri Bazaar blast that killed 17 people, has been found guilty. The prosecution will be pleading for a death sentence," announced public prosecuter Ujjwal Nikam. However, the verdict for accused no. 10 to 13 will not be announced on Thursday, court sources said. Forty-three-year-old Ghansar is the accused no. 9 and the fifth in the Mumbai blasts case (after the four Memons) to be held guilty. Ghansar is also the first of Tiger Memon's hit men to be sentenced and has 14 charges against him - including charges under Section 3 TADA act and Section 120-B of the Indian Penal Code - the punishment of which could range from five years in jail to life imprisonment. Said Ghansar's lawyer, Farhana Shah, "They are being tried under Section 120b and Section 32 and face either life imprisonment or death penalty."
Ghansar studied till Class VII, quit school in 1977 and worked as a mechanic and an electrician. He later went to Saudi Arabia for work where he became a partner at a shop called "Al-Panna" at the Heera Panna shopping complex On March 11, Ghansar was taken to Tiger Memon by Tiger's manager where he was told to take an explosive-laden Bajaj Chetak scooter and park it at Zaveri Bazaar which he did knowing fully well that the scooter was loaded. He was an witness to all the explosive filled vehicles being readied in Tiger's garage in al-Husseini building in Mahim. He parked the scooter at 0215 hrs on April 12, 1993, went to a mosque, prayed for forgiveness and went back home. He also reportedly went to the Sahar International Airport and picked up the boarding passes for Tiger.