Bengaluru: A special NIA court on Monday pronounced the guilty Mohammad Shariq2022 The main accused in the Mangaluru pressure cooker blast case was sentenced to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs 94,000 under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and IPC. Shariq, who had confessed to the crime in December last year, is currently lodged in Bengaluru Central Jail. On November 19, 2022, an improvised explosive device placed in a pressure cooker in an auto rickshaw exploded in Mangaluru’s Kankanady area, injuring passenger Shariq, as well as driver Purushottam Pujari. The NIA said that Shariq intended to plant the bomb in the Qadri Manjunath temple to spread communal tension, but it exploded earlier due to a glitch while scheduling the timer – he set a timer for 9 minutes instead of 90 minutes for the bomb to explode. Special public prosecutor P Prasanna Kumar told TOI that besides collecting evidence against Shariq, he examined 45 witnesses. Feeling that “a strong case” had been made against him. Shariq pleaded guilty to the charges.