Thaindian News

Mumbai, Feb 11 (IANS) Lawyer Shahid Azmi, who was defending one of the key accused in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks trial, was shot dead in his office late Thursday evening, police said.
Some unidentified persons barged into Azmi’s office in Taximen’s Colony in Kurla, north-east Mumbai suburb, just before 9 p.m. and opened fire at him.

Azmi sustained four bullet injuries and was taken to the nearby Rajawadi Hospital in a critical condition, where he died later.

Azmi, 34, represented Fahim Ansari, one of the key accused in the ongoing 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks trial.

Among other things, Azmi’s client Fahim - a Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) activist - is charged with preparing the groundwork to help the perpetrators of the terror attacks.

At the tender age of 15, Azmi was arrested for violence during the communal riots that rocked Mumbai between December 1992-January 1993.

In 1992, Azmi was accused of plotting to kill Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray.

Charged under the now-defunct Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Act (TADA), Azmi was awarded a five-year sentence in 1999, but was acquitted the same year by the Supreme Court.

When he was in jail between 1992-1999, he studied for a post-graduate course and after acquittal by the apex court, he studied for a law degree before entering legal practice.