Court hears bail plea of four accused in 2006 Malegaon blasts

MUMBAI: A special Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) court on Friday heard arguments on the bail plea of four remaining accused in the 2006 Malegaon serial blasts case. The four accused—Lokesh Sharma, Dhan Singh, Rajendra Chaudhary and Manohar Narwaria —were arrested after the NIA alleged that the bombings were the doing of their group. The matter will be heard again on Tuesday. In April, nine Muslim accused were proved to be innocent and discharged from the case.
In 2007, a case was registered in the Mecca Masjid bomb blast. In that case, Swami Aseemanand, an accused, had allegedly confessed that RSS leader Sunil Joshi had told him that the blasts at Malegaon were the handiwork of his “boys”. He also reportedly confessed that in June 2006, a meeting was held at co-accused Bharat Rateshwar’s Valsad house where he had suggested that Malegaon has 86% Muslim population and it should be chosen for the first bomb blast.
The NIA, in its reply opposing the bail earlier, had said that it is not correct to say that its investigation is based on Aseemanand’s disclosure. “The arrest of the four accused is based on evidence revealed in the probe by the NIA, which is part of the supplementary chargesheet. It is not correct to say that there is lack of transference and a biased approach on part of the NIA,” the reply said.