In a significant development, the Bombay High Court has granted bail to 14 Muslim men arrested in connection with the communal violence that erupted in Mira Road on the eve of the Ram Temple consecration ceremony in Ayodhya this January. Justice N J Jamadar, presiding over the case, ruled that their continued detention was “tenuous” and lacked sufficient basis for prolongation.
During the proceedings, the court examined the evidence and found it insufficient to infer a premeditated conspiracy among the accused to assault participants of the temple consecration convoy. Notably, Justice Jamadar highlighted the absence of CCTV footage capturing any of the accused assaulting the complainant or others during the incident.
The court observed that with the investigation into the case already completed and the accused having established roots in the community, the risk of them fleeing justice was considered minimal. Furthermore, the fact that the accused have been in custody since January and the trial is unlikely to conclude soon contributed to the decision to grant bail.
The accused had approached the high court seeking bail after their application was rejected by a sessions court in the neighboring Thane district. According to police reports, the accused were allegedly part of a larger mob of 50 to 60 people who surrounded the complainant’s convoy, raising slogans and initiating assaults.
However, the high court noted the absence of prima facie material establishing that the accused were indeed members of the unlawful assembly. Additionally, the court mentioned that the convoy’s entry into the locality was coincidental, undermining claims of a premeditated plan to target the rally participants.
