Accused in Saif Ali Khan attack pleads guilty, seeks leniency

Shariful Islam (L), accused in the Saif Ali Khan attack, has pleaded guilty

MUMBAI: Bangladesh national Shariful Islam, accused of breaking into the Bandra home of actor Saif Ali Khan and attacking him on January 16, 2025, moved sessions court on Friday seeking to plead guilty, and prayed for leniency in sentencing. The plea comes days after the court framed stringent charges for armed robbery or dacoity with attempt to cause death or grievous hurt against the 31-year-old. On August 14, charges were also framed under the Foreigners Act and Passport (Entry into India) for illegally entering and staying in the country. The maximum sentence attracted is life imprisonment. When a person pleads guilty, he forfeits the right to a trial. The prosecution’s reply has been sought. The matter will come up for hearing on September 11.

Saif attack case accused to forfeit his right to trial by pleading guilty

Shariful Islam, accused in the alleged housebreaking and assault on actor Saif Ali Khan, moved the sessions court on Friday to plead guilty. An accused may file an application to plead guilty in the court where his case is pending for trial. Among various other details, the application should mention that he has not been convicted in a similar case previously. The accused usually cites the guilty plea as a mitigating circumstance for sentencing.

Guilty plea used as mitigating factor

It is the prosecution’s case that on the night of December 31, 2024, Islam surveyed Bandra and Khar areas before taking up a job at a Bandra West hotel, just a few metres from Satguru Sharan, where Khan and his family reside. After a dispute with the hotel owner, he quit the job. On January 16, 2025, he allegedly walked from Bandra to Khar and then to Satguru Sharan, where he attempted a burglary, leading to the attack on the actor. The accused was arrested on January 19, 2025, and during interrogation, it was allegedly revealed he is a Bangladeshi citizen who illegally entered India. He is accused of grievously injuring Khan, his employee, and another witness with a weapon, with the intent to cause death. The chargesheet contained 40 witness statements and forensic evidence showing the accused’s T-shirt bloodstains matched Khan’s blood sample. Eliyamma Phillip, 56, Saif Ali Khan’s staff nurse, allegedly identified the accused during an identification parade at Arthur Road Jail on February 5, 2025. The prosecution submitted that Islam’s left-hand fingerprints were found at the crime scene. The prosecution also referred to a facial recognition test. Police confirmed the accused’s face matched the image captured in the CCTV footage from Khan’s residence. The prosecution stated a medical officer reported that Khan was injured by the weapon recovered from the accused. Further, a chemical analysis report had also been received from the forensic lab, Kalina, stating the piece of knife blade found at the crime scene, the partially broken knife found on the accused, and the piece of knife found in the body of an injured Khan were parts of the same knife, the prosecution had submitted. During the crime reconstruction, Islam allegedly demonstrated climbing a 4-ft wall, using a ladder for the 12-ft ascent to the duct, accessing the fourth floor where he cut the rat mesh, using stairs to the 10th floor, and climbing through duct pipes to enter the flat’s bathroom.