Trial in 2008 Malegaon blast case over, NIA seeks `commensurate' punishment for Pragya Thakur, other
Mumbai (PTI): Almost 17 years after a blast killed six people and left over 100 injured in Maharashtra's communally sensitive Malegaon town, the trial in the case got over on Saturday with the special NIA court adjourning the matter to May 8 for judgement.
The National Investigation Agency, which probed the case, sought "commensurate punishment" for the accused who include former MP and BJP leader Pragya Thakur.
On Saturday, the prosecution filed its final written arguments, marking the end of the trial, presided over by A K Lahoti, special judge for NIA cases.
The prosecution submitted that the blast in Malegaon -- a town with a sizable Muslim population -- was orchestrated by the conspirators to terrorize a section of Muslim community, disrupt essential services, create communal tensions, and threaten the state's internal security.
Six people were killed and over 100 injured when an explosive device strapped to a motorcycle went off near a mosque in the town, about 200 km from Mumbai, on September 29, 2008.
Besides Pragya Thakur, Lt Col Prasad Purohit, Major (retired) Ramesh Upadhyay, Ajay Rahirkar, Sudhakar Dwivedi, Sudhakar Chaturvedi and Sameer Kulkarni are the accused in the case, charged under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and Indian Penal Code.
The NIA said in its final submission that based on "relevant, admissible, cogent, trustworthy, wholly reliable and proved evidence" it "conclusively and cogently" established the crucial circumstances to form a complete chain of events.
It was established that the accused were "directly involved in the part of larger conspiracy hatched amongst themselves and (were) instrumental in causing a bomb explosion," the document said.
The blast took place during the holy month of Ramzan, just before the Navratri festival, the NIA pointed out, adding that the intention of the accused was to strike terror in a section of the Muslim community.
The act was part of "their larger conspiracy" to "establish 'Aryawrat (Hindu Rashtra)", the prosecution contended.
It urged the court to convict the accused "for commission of serious terror offences" and award "commensurate punishment" in the interest of justice.
During the trial, the prosecution presented 323 witnesses, of which 34 turned hostile.
The case was initially probed by the Anti Terrorism Squad (ATS), Maharashtra, before being transferred to NIA in 2011.
The central agency in its charge sheet filed in 2016 gave a clean chit to Thakur and three other accused- Shyam Sahu, Praveen Takalki and Shivnarayan Kalsangra- saying it found no evidence against them.
The court, however, discharged Sahu, Kalsangra and Takalki but ruled that Pragya Thakur will have to face the trial.
The charges framed against the accused on October 30, 2018, included sections 16 (committing terrorist act) and 18 (conspiring to commit terrorist act) of the UAPA and IPC sections 120 (b) (criminal conspiracy), 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder), 324 (voluntarily causing hurt) and 153 (a) (promoting enmity between two religious groups), among others.
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Vedavyas Kamath objects to restrictions on late-night religious events in Dakshina Kannada
Bengaluru: Mangaluru South MLA Vedavyas Kamath raised objections in the Assembly over police restrictions on holding religious programs beyond 10:30 pm in Dakshina Kannada district. He alleged that while the police cite court and government orders, such hurdles never existed when the BJP was in power.
“Even when there was a Supreme Court order restricting events beyond 10:30 pm, religious programs faced no obstacles during our government. Now, with the Congress government, these restrictions are creating problems. The government must ensure that laws or court orders do not come in the way of traditional religious celebrations,” Kamath said.
He pointed out that during the recent Sri Krishna Janmashtami celebrations, police seized sound systems for allegedly using loudspeakers above the permitted decibel level. Cases were also filed against event organizers and sound system owners. Kamath demanded that no such disruptions should occur during upcoming festivals like Dasara and Ganesh Chaturthi.
“Why are these restrictions being imposed only in Dakshina Kannada when no such issues exist in other districts?” he asked.
Responding to him, ruling party members remarked, “Other districts are peaceful; your district has disturbances. Maintain peace, and you too will get permission.”
Intervening in the debate, Speaker U.T. Khader said, “In this country, laws may be broken, but traditions cannot be broken. Since religious programs in every community often take place late at night, the government should step in to find a solution to the inconvenience faced by the people.”
