A court in Gujarat on Saturday acquitted 122 people arrested under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act 19 years ago for participating in a meeting in Surat as members of the banned outfit Students’ Islamic Movement of India (SIMI).

“The court has found that the accused had gathered to attend [an] educational programme and had not carried any weapon,” the court said, according to a report by carried by The Indian Express. “The prosecution has also not proved that the accused had gathered for any activity related to SIMI. Even during the raids not a single member out of 123 arrested from the spot tried to escape. Neither do the seized documents have any relevance with SIMI,” Surat Chief Judicial Magistrate observed.

Dave said the investigators had failed to prove the accused “were members of the banned outfit or that they had gathered there to give a push to the movement”.

Of the 127, 111 were present in court on Saturday. Seven are dead, five are in jail on other charges, while four are bedridden. Almost all of them spent 10 months to one year in jail, subsequently getting bail from the Gujarat High Court.

On December 28, 2001, the Surat city police had carried out raids at a hall in Navsari Bazaar, apparently on a tip-off, and arrested 123 people who had come from across the country for a gathering. Those present said they had come to attend a two-day seminar on educational rights and constitutional guidance organised by the All India Minorities Education Board.

But police tried to establish association with SIMI on the fact that the hall had been booked by A R Qureshi and Alif Majid Mansuri, the brother of SIMI national member Sajid Mansuri. It said the educational seminar was just a front to carry out SIMI activities. 

The police claimed that they had recovered forms to enrol into SIMI, as well as banners, books and literature praising terrorist Osama bin Laden. They had alleged that on seeing the police, several of them present had chewed up SIM cards of their mobile phones, which were rare at the time, to destroy evidence. Four more were taken into custody later.

The participants of the gathering came from different parts of Gujarat as well as from Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.