Ahmedabad: A metropolitan court on May 15 remanded to five days police custody Hyderabad-based sharp shooter Asghar Ali and eight others, allegedly involved in the killing of former Gujarat Home Minister Haren Pandya.

Metropolitan magistrate R I Rawal remanded them to crime branch custody till May 20 after hearing arguments of public prosecutor H B Chauhan and defence counsel Hashim Qureshi.

Besides Ali, eight others who were produced before the court were Mohammed Abdul Rauf, Mohammed Abdul Bari, Ifthikar alias Hassan Hazimi, Mohammed Saifuddin, Zuber Shariff Muslim, Mohammed Imtiaz Muslim, Noor-ur-Rehman, Syed Muvasir Hussain alias Syed Wasir Hussain.

Earlier, the public prosecutor pleaded for 10 days' police custody for the accused, which was rejected by the court and five days remand was granted.

The accused would be interrogated by crime branch for their alleged involvement in major conspiracy to foment large scale terrorist activities in Gujarat, including assassination of top political leaders and industrialists, apparently to revenge the post Godhra communal riots.

Asghar Ali and four others were arrested from Hyderabad for their alleged involvement in Pandya's killing on March 26 outside Law Garden in Ahmedabad.

PTI