Mumbai Court acquits all seven accused in 2008 Malegaon blast case.
The blast took place on on September 29, 2008 in Malegaon near Mumbai where six persons were killed and more than 100 injured.
All the accused who were out on bail appeared at the sessions court in south Mumbai on Thursday which was barricaded with heavy security.
The judge stated that several loopholes in the prosecution's case and the investigation that was carried out and thus the accused persons deserved the benefit of doubt.
A special court in Mumbai on Thursday acquitted all the seven accused, including former BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur and Lieutenant Colonel Prasad Purohit, in the September 2008 Malegaon blast case in which six persons were killed and 101 others injured.
The judge stated that several loopholes in the prosecution's case and the investigation that was carried out and thus the accused persons deserved the benefit of doubt.
The accused in the case comprised Thakur, Purohit, Major (retired) Ramesh Upadhyay, Ajay Rahirkar, Sudhakar Dwivedi, Sudhakar Chaturvedi and Sameer Kulkarni.
They all were charged for committing a terrorist act under provisions of the UAPA and relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Arms Act.
Mumbai Court Hearing On 2008 Malegaon Blast Case
Special Judge A K Lahoti, assigned to hear cases of the National Investigation Agency (NIA), flagged several loopholes in the prosecution's case and the investigation carried out, and said the accused persons deserved the benefit of doubt.
The court while reading out the judgment said there was no "reliable and cogent" evidence to prove the case beyond reasonable doubt.
"Mere suspicion cannot take the place of real proof," the court said, adding that in the absence of any evidence, the accused persons deserve the benefit of doubt.
"The overall evidence does not inspire confidence in the court to convict the accused. There is no reliable and cogent evidence to warrant conviction," the judge said while reading out the judgment.
The court also said provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) were not applicable to the case.
The court said it was not established that the motorbike used in the blast was registered in the name of Thakur, as claimed by the prosecution.
It has also not been established that the blast was carried out by the bomb allegedly planted on the bike, the court said.
What was the Malegaon blast case?
Six persons were killed and more than 100 injured when an explosive device strapped to a motorcycle went off near a mosque in the Malegaon town, located about 200 km from Mumbai, on September 29, 2008.
The blast took place during the holy month of Ramzan, just before the Navratri festival, the NIA pointed out, claiming the intention of the accused was to strike terror in a section of the Muslim community.
All the accused were charged for committing a terrorist act under provisions of the UAPA and relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Arms Act.
The charges comprised UAPA sections 16 (committing terrorist act) and 18 (conspiring to commit terrorist act) and various IPC sections, including 120 (b) (criminal conspiracy), 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder), 324 (voluntarily causing hurt) and 153 (a) (promoting enmity between two religious groups).
The prosecution's claim was that the blast was orchestrated by right wing extremists with an intention to terrorise the local Muslim community.
The NIA, which conducted the probe into the case, had sought "commensurate punishment" for the accused.
The trial, which started in 2018, got over on April 19 this year.
During the trial, the prosecution presented 323 witnesses, of whom 37 turned hostile.
The probe was initially carried out by the state Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), which had pinned the blame on right wing extremists who were members of 'Abhinav Bharat' group.
The probe was later handed over to the NIA, which initially given a clean chit to Thakur, but the court had said there was prima facie evidence for her to face trial in the case.
In its final argument, the NIA submitted that the blast in Malegaon - a town with a sizable Muslim population - was orchestrated by the conspirators to terrorise a section of Muslim community, disrupt essential services, create communal tensions and threaten the state's internal security.
Earlier in the morning, the seven accused, all out on bail, arrived at the sessions court in south Mumbai which was barricaded with heavy security.
