September 17, 2025

The Bombay High Court shook up the 2008 Malegaon blast case on Tuesday by saying that it's "not an open gate for everyone" to file an appeal against acquittal. This bold statement came as a bench led by Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Gautam Ankhad heard an appeal filed by family members of the six victims who lost their lives in the blast. These grieving families challenged a special court’s judgment that acquitted seven accused, including former BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur and Lt Col Prasad Purohit. The HC bench zeroed in on whether the family members were ever examined as witnesses during the trial. Nisar Ahmed, the first appellant whose son died in the blast, was reportedly not a witness. The family's lawyer promised to provide exact details the next day. The court fired back, "If your son died in the blast, then you should have been a witness." They stressed, "You have to indicate whether they were witnesses or not. Give us details. This is not an open gate for everyone." The court listed the hearing for Wednesday. The appeal claims that bugs in the investigation can’t be an excuse to acquit the accused. It argued that the secretive nature of the conspiracy means there cannot be obvious direct evidence. The petition slammed the special NIA court's July 31 judgment as "wrong and bad in law" and demanded it be overturned. Flashback: On September 29, 2008, a deadly motorcycle bomb exploded near a mosque in Malegaon, Maharashtra’s Nashik district, killing six and injuring 101. The appeal scolded the trial court for acting like a "postman or mute spectator," saying it should ask tough questions or summon witnesses if prosecutors fail. "The trial court has unfortunately acted as a mere post office and allowed a deficient prosecution to benefit the accused," the appeal fired. It also expressed serious worries about the National Investigation Agency’s handling of the case, pushing for the accused to be convicted. According to the appeal, Maharashtra’s Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) cracked a major conspiracy by arresting the seven accused. Since then, the appeal proudly noted, no blasts have occurred in minority-populated areas. The appeal accused the NIA of watering down charges against the accused after taking over the case. But the special court wasn’t convinced. It said suspicion alone can’t replace hard proof and found no strong evidence "to warrant a conviction." Special judge A K Lahoti said there was no "reliable and cogent evidence" to prove guilt beyond doubt. The prosecution accused right-wing extremists of carrying out the blast to terrorize the Muslim community in sensitive Malegaon. Still, the NIA court pointed out big holes in the prosecution’s claim and investigation, giving the accused the benefit of doubt. Alongside Pragya Singh Thakur and Lt Col Prasad Purohit, accused included retired Major Ramesh Upadhyay, Ajay Rahirkar, Sudhakar Dwivedi, Sudhakar Chaturvedi, and Sameer Kulkarni. The legal drama continues as the Bombay High Court demands answers and tougher scrutiny.

Read More at Economictimes →

Tags: Malegaon blast, Bombay high court, Pragya singh thakur, Nia investigation, Acquittal appeal, Terrorism case,