Six family members of those who lost their lives in the 2008 Malegaon bomb blast have approached the Bombay High Court, challenging the recent acquittal of seven accused, including former BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur and Lt Col Prasad Purohit, by a special NIA court.
The appeal was filed on Monday by Nisar Ahmed Sayyed Bilal and five others, represented by advocate Mateen Shaikh. The petitioners have sought the High Court’s intervention to quash the judgment delivered by the special NIA court on July 31, which had acquitted all seven accused citing lack of reliable evidence.
The special court, presided over by Judge A.K. Lahoti, had ruled that “mere suspicion cannot replace real proof” and observed that the prosecution had failed to establish guilt beyond reasonable doubt. It highlighted multiple shortcomings in the investigation and granted the accused the benefit of doubt.
On September 29, 2008, an explosive strapped to a motorcycle detonated near a mosque in Malegaon, a communally sensitive town in Maharashtra’s Nashik district, killing six people and injuring 101 others. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) had alleged that the blast was orchestrated by right-wing extremists with the intent to terrorise the Muslim community.
The seven accused in the case are Pragya Singh Thakur, Lt Col Prasad Purohit, retired Major Ramesh Upadhyay, Ajay Rahirkar, Sudhakar Dwivedi, Sudhakar Chaturvedi, and Sameer Kulkarni.
The petitioners have contended that the trial court’s decision is “bad in law” and contrary to the weight of evidence presented. They argued that the acquittal not only disregarded key aspects of the prosecution’s case but also undermined justice for the victims of the blast.
The High Court is now expected to hear the appeal and examine whether the special court erred in granting relief to the accused.
