Exclusive: Wife of Malegoan blast accused Lt-Col Srikant Purohit meets President, seeks speedy trail
Purohit has been in jail without bail for five years despite the NIA not being able to file a chargesheet against him, Aparna Purohit told Headlines Today.
"My husband is a victim of vote bank politics. As the supreme commander of armed forces, please get him a speedy trial," a teary-eyed Aparna Purohit, wife of Lieutenant Colonel Prasad Srikant Purohit told President Pranab Mukherjee on Tuesday.
Flanked by Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut and Lt-Col Purohit's sister Vasanti, Aparna Purohit met the President and requested him to ensure Purohit gets a fair trial.
"Purohit has been in jail without bail for five years. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has been probing the 2008 Malegaon blast case for the past two years but they have so far not been able to file a chargesheet against him for lack of evidence. There is also no evidence of his involvement in the Samjhauta Express blast," Aparna Purohit told Headlines Today in an exclusive interview after the meeting.
Purohit was earlier chargesheeted by the Maharashtra Anti-Terror Squad in the 2008 Malegaon blast case but after the NIA took over investigations, despite his being interrogated in prison by the NIA, the case has not moved forward.
Aparna Purohit had earlier sought an appointment with the Chief of the Army Staff General Bikram Singh and met a Deputy Director General in Discipline and Vigilance Branch.
"In the military court of inquiry, 57 officers vouched for Purohit's integrity. He has the chief's commendation card for infiltrating into terrorist organisations. The Maharashtra Anti-Terror Squad has commended his intelligence inputs, yet he is in jail for five years,'' Purohit's elder sister Vasanti said.
The Shiv Sena launched a scathing attack on the Congress-NCP government for indulging in "vote bank" politics and said they will take Purohit issue to every household across Maharashtra.
"Law should be equal for all. Sanjay Dutt is convicted in the 1993 blasts case (under Arms Act) yet he continues to get an extension on his parole. The NIA has neither been able to chargesheet Purohit in Malegaon 2008 blast nor in the Samjhauta blast despite probing the matter for two years plus. Yet he is repeatedly denied bail,'' Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut said.
"We will fight this in courts and we will fight this on the streets of Maharashtra. A patriot cannot be in jail just for vote bank politics,'' he said.
Sources in the Ministry of Home Affairs said they had been seeking Purohit's custody for questioning in Malegaon case and, should leads emerge, even in the Samjhauta blast case.
"The Maharashtra ATS has chargesheeted him and we are probing the matter," sources added.