This activist fights to get justice for innocent

FOR A CAUSE: Farid Shaikh (right) with Haj House imam Gulam Yahya Illahi Bakhsh

Mateen Hafeez I TNN

Mumbai: Farid Shaikh, chairman of the Mumbai Aman Committee, was the main force behind the successful defence of Maharashtra’s first POTA accused, Mohammed Afroz, as well as the recent acquittal of Haj House imam Gulam Yahya Illahi Bakhsh from a terror case.

Bakhsh is the first person to be booked under the amended unlawful activities (prevention) act (UAPA) by the state anti-terrorism squad.

Said Shaikh (45), the sports director of Anjuman-I-Islam, “I strive to get justice for those who I believe have been wrongly framed by the police.’’

Talking about the case of Afroz, who was arrested in 2001 on suspicion of being an al-Qaida operative, he said, “I have known Afroz since he was in school and knew that he had nothing to do with the crime he was accused of.’’

Shaikh alleged that he was threatened by the senior police officials for taking up cases of suspected terrorists. “But nothing can stop me from fighting for the innocent,” he said.

The Times of India, January 25, 2010