Faced torture to implicate Modi in 2008 Malegaon blast case, alleges Pragya

Former BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur, who was recently acquitted in the September 2008 Malegaon blast case, on Saturday alleged that she was tortured by the investigating officers who asked her to name several persons, including PM Narendra Modi.

This is the first time Thakur has made this claim which finds no mention in the 1036-page judgment of the special NIA court, acquitting all seven accused in the case.

Thakur appeared before the sessions court here on Saturday to complete her surety formalities. Speaking to reporters outside, she claimed that she was tortured during her interrogation. Notably, Special Judge AK Lahoti in his judgment has dismissed Thakur's claims of torture and ill-treatment.

“They (officers) told me to take PM Modi’s name, as at the time I was staying in Surat (Gujarat). There are several names like Bhagwat (apparent reference to RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat) and so on, but I did not take anyone’s name as I did not want to lie,” she said, adding that she had put all this in writing.

“Their objective was to torture me. They said if I did not take the names, then they will torture me. The names include UP CM Yogi Adityanath, Sudarshan, Indresh, Ram Madhav, and many more, which I can’t recall at the moment,” Thakur said.

The former BJP MP alleged that she was detained illegally even in the hospital, where she fainted and her lungs collapsed. “I am writing my story, in which I will mention all this. The truth will come out. This is a victory of religion, Sanatan dharma and Hindutva...this is a Sanatani Rashtra, and it is always victorious. They tried hard by torturing me and bringing all devotees in this....we will try so that they are punished,” she said.

The court, in its judgment, said while Thakur had alleged ill-treatment, no evidence was presented to support her claims. It also referred to the top court’s 2011 order, in which it rejected her claims of illegal custody, torture and detention.