Malegaon blasts case: Maharashtra govt challenges NIA court's decision to discharge eight accused

On Wednesday, Maharashtra government opposed an NIA court’s decision to acquit eight people in the 2006 Malegaon blasts case. According to a report in India Today , six of those discharged allegedly engineered the bombings. However, public prosecutor in the case, Sandeep Shinde as quoted in The Times of India report said that they have filed papers in the court last week seeking to challenge the discharge of those accused.

Two powerful bombs which were placed on bicycles had exploded near the Hamidia Mosque in Malegaon on 8 September, 2006 after the Friday afternoon prayers on the occasion of the solemn ‘Shab-E-Barat’ when special prayers are offered for the departed souls. The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad had probed the case first and arrested nine Muslim youth, some of whom were allegedly linked to the outlawed Students Islamic Movement of India.

They were Noor-ul Huda Samsudha, Raees Ahmed Rajabali Mansuri, Salman Farsi Abdul Latif Aimi, Farogh Iqbal Ahmed Magdumi, Shaikh Mohammed Ali Alam, Asif Bashir Khan, M Zahid Abdul Majid Ansari and Abrar Ahmed Ghulam Ahmed and had all spent minimum five years in jail after they were arrested, said advocate Shahid Nadeem Ansari who represented some of the accused. While one accused — Shabbir Ahmed Masiullah — died during the pendency of the trial, four others — including a Pakistani national — were declared as absconders.

The National Investigative Agency (NIA) court found no evidence after taking over the probe from CBI in 2011 because Swami Aseemananda had confessed in another case about the involvement of Hindu right-wing groups in Malegaon blasts. Last April, the NIA informed the Special Designated Court that it had no evidences against the nine Muslim accused and thereafter the charges against them were dropped by the court.

After almost ten years, the eight-accused were discharged on 25 April, 2016.

With inputs from IANS