Long-delayed trial expects to get underway this year

The trial in the long-pending 2008 Malegaon bomb blast case is expected to begin in 2016 provided the accused does not go to a higher court with any plea that could impede it further.

This case was in the news for more reasons than just the blasts. For example, it was for the first time that the arrested accused were linked to saffron groups. Secondly, it was ATS chief Hemant Karkare who was killed in the 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai who had cracked the case. More recently, former special public prosecutor Rohini Salian had alleged that she was asked by an National Investigation Agency (NIA) officer to go slow on the case.

A special MCOCA court is hearing the bail application filed by Lt. Colonel Shrikant Prasad Purohit and one more accused. The hearing on his bail plea will be heard in-camera and arguments made by the lawyers will not be permitted to be reported.

Both the persons have filed a fresh bail plea after their application for bail was rejected along with of all the other accused, including Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur.

A total of 12 accused have been arrested in this matter and forensic reports had showed use of highly explosive substances such as RDX and ammonium nitrate in the bomb and hence the accused were charged with serious provisions of law such as criminal conspiracy, murder and relevant provisions of the Explosive Substance Act, Arms Act, Unlawful Activities Prevention Act and MCOCA. Out of the 12 accused, four are already out on bail. Four persons had died and 79 others were injured in the blast on September 29, 2008.

This case was registered at Malegaon’s Bhiku Chowk. Soon after the blasts, the accused were arrested and a chargesheet was also filed within the stipulated time; however, the trial could not commence because the accused had challenged application of MCOCA on the case in 2010 and since then the matter has been pending in the court.

The apex court had referred this matter back to the court raising a doubt on the application of MCOCA on all the accused except Rakesh Dhawde. The Supreme Court was of the opinion that MCOCA was rightly imposed on Dhawde and it had directed the MCOCA court to decide their bail application. However special public prosecutor Avinash Rasal and lawyers on behalf of a few injured through Jamiat-e-Ulema Maharashtra intervened in the matter and opposed the bail applications contending that the Supreme Court had only raised doubts on the application of MCOCA and it did not remove the stringent act from the case and hence the court should independently decide on these applications.

Special judge S.D. Tekale after hearing arguments from all sides had opined that in view of the Supreme Court judgment, the provisions of MCOCA does not come in the way of deciding bail applications but considering the merits of the case, the judge rejected the bail pleas. Soon after this Purohit again filed a bail application which is pending before the court and as per legal experts there is no hurdle in commencing the trial now.

“We hope to make some progress (towards commencing trial) in the beginning of 2016, and the current position is that bail applications are being heard,” said special public prosecutor Avinash Rasal who is representing the NIA.

He also clarified that it was a bit difficult to commence the trial on the basis of a chargesheet filed by the ATS because NIA is conducting further investigation and it is not yet clear what they have found. “We are waiting for them to file supplementary chargesheet and as soon as it is filed the court will proceed further,” he added. The Controversy

This case was embroiled in controversy when former special public prosecutor Rohini Salian claimed that an NIA officer had asked her to go slow on the case. She had claimed that since the new government came to power she has been under pressure form the NIA to go soft on the case.

The NIA officially countered the statement saying that the trial was yet to start. Later Ms Salian was officially de-notified from the list of special public prosecutors; however more than a month after she alleged pressure from NIA, she disclosed the name of the NIA officer as Suhas Warke. She had filed an affidavit disclosing Warke’s name as a criminal contempt petition was filed in the court and she was supposed to disclose the name of the officer who allegedly asked her to go slow on the case. Accused: 14 chargesheeted by Maharashtra ATS on January 20, 2009 and April 21, 2011, before the special MCOCA court in Mumbai.

Judicial custody: Pragya Singh Thakur, Major Ramesh Upadhyay, Lt Col Prasad Purohit, Sameer Kulkarni, Rakesh Dhawade, Sudhakar Dwivedi a.ka. Dayanand Pandey, Sudhakar Chaturvedi, Pravin Takalki

Bail: Shivnarayan Kalsangra, Shyam Sahu, Ajay alias Raja Rahirkar, Jagdish Mhatre

Absconding: Ramchandra Kalsangra, Sandeep Dange