A Punjab court on Tuesday acquitted British national Jagtar Singh Johal and seven others in an alleged terror funding case from 2016 under the Arms Act and the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, The Indian Express reported.

However, Johal, alias Jaggi, continued to face eight other cases that are being probed by the National Investigation Agency, The Times of India reported. He has been in police custody for more than seven years.

On Tuesday, Additional Session Judge Harjeet Singh of the Moga court acquitted Johal and the seven others of terror funding charges, saying that the prosecution had failed to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt.

Apart from Johal, the others acquitted in the UAPA case were Taljeet Singh (alias Jimmy), Ramandeep Singh (Bagga), Dharaminder (Gugni), Hardeep Singh (Bhalwan or Shera), Anil Kumar (Kala), Jagtar Singh (Jaggi) and Tarlok Singh (Laadi), The Times of India reported.

However, Taljeet Singh, Ramandeep Singh and Hardeep Singh were convicted for weapon recovery under the Arms Act and sentenced to two years imprisonment.

The court had reserved its judgement in the case on February 28.

Johal, who is a native of Punjab’s Jalandhar, has been in custody since November 2017. He was listed as an accused in eight other cases for alleged terror activities, including six murders related to a series of targeted killings that took place in Punjab in 2016 and 2017. He is currently in a jail in Delhi.

The case in Moga was filed against Johal and the others on December 17, 2016, at the Baghapurana police station under several sections of the Indian Penal Code, the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act and Arms Act, The Indian Express reported.

This came after the police recovered a 9 mm pistol and cartridges while interrogating Tarlok Singh, who was then in jail for the alleged murder of a Dera follower named Gurdev Singh from Faridkot’s Bajakhana.

During the investigation, the police claimed that Johal had visited France several times to “fund terrorism activities” in Punjab, which had allegedly led to the targeted murders of several persons from different communities, The Indian Express reported.

The police said that Johal was allegedly in touch with Khalistan separatists to create unrest in Punjab, including Khalistan Liberation Force militant Harminder Singh Mintu and a few persons based in Pakistan. Mintu, also accused in this case, died during the trial.

Khalistan is an independent Sikh nation sought by some groups. The Khalistan Liberation Force is designated a terrorist outfit in India.

On Tuesday, the court said that the prosecution had failed to prove its case under sections of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act and the Indian Penal Code. “It is settled law that benefit of doubt always goes to the accused,” the order said.

During the proceedings, lawyer Jaspal Singh Manjhpur, representing Johal, told the court that the police had failed to recover incriminating material from him in the case

He said that Deputy Superintendent of Police Balwinder Singh, during cross-examination, also said that he “cannot tell the exact date, month and year” when Johal visited France and that “there is no document to show” that he had handed over money to Taljeet Singh or Mintu.

“DSP [Deputy Superintendent of Police] Jangjeet Singh said in the court that he had no idea who nominated Johal as an accused in the case,” said Manjhpur.

Among the murder cases pending against Johal in a National Investigation Agency court are those about the killings of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh leaders Jagdish Gagneja and Ravinder Gosain, and Dera Sacha Sauda follower Satpal and his son Ramesh.

Other cases include the murders of Shiv Sena leader Durga Prasad, a church pastor named Sultan Masih and Hindu Takht leader Amit Sharma.