Malegaon blast: Purohit gets bail after 9 yrs in jail

Satya Prakash

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 21

Citing “material contradictions” in the chargesheets filed by the Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS), Mumbai, and the National Investigating Agency (NIA), the Supreme Court today granted bail to Lt Col Shrikant Purohit, who has been in jail for almost nine years in connection with the 2008 Malegaon blast case.

Purohit is the second main accused to be released on bail after co-accused Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur was granted bail on April 25 by the Bombay High Court that said there was “no prima facie evidence against her”.

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Seven persons were killed in a blast on September 29, 2008, at Malegaon, a communally sensitive textile town in Nashik district of Maharashtra.

A Bench of Justices RK Agrawal and Abhay Mohan Sapre — which reserved its verdict on August 17 — set aside the April 25 verdict of the Bombay High Court denying bail to Purohit.

Keeping in view that the NIA submitted a supplementary chargesheet that is “at variance” with the one filed by the ATS, the trial was likely to take a long time and the appellant has been in prison for eight years and eight months, “we are of the considered view that the appellant has made out a prima facie case for release on bail and we deem it appropriate to enlarge the appellant herein on bail”, the Bench said.

It asked him not to leave India without prior permission and not to influence witnesses. However, the grant of bail shall be no ground for similar relief to other accused in the case and each plea for relief will be considered on its own merits, it clarified.

The top court said the “right to bail is not to be denied merely because of the sentiments of the community being against the accused”.

It said: “Liberty of a citizen is undoubtedly important, but this is to balance with the security of the community. A balance is required to be maintained between the personal liberty of the accused and the investigational rights of the agency. It must result in minimum interference with the personal liberty of the accused and the right of the agency to investigate the case.”.

Lt Col to be attached to Army unit

New Delhi: Lt Colonel Shrikant Purohit will continue to be under suspension with the Army. Since he has been released on bail, he has to be attached to an Army unit. The attachment comes with conditions such as not being able to leave station without permission and daily reporting to his unit. This is a standard 

procedure for officers facing suspension. The conditions will depend on the court order and subsequent decision taken by the Judge Advocate General’s branch and have to be concurred with the Army HQ. Under attachment, he can, as per laws, wear his uniform. Colonel Purohit’s return to active duty depends on the final verdict in the case. TNS