The accused included former BJP MP (2019 to 2024) Pragya Singh Thakur, retired Indian Army Lieutenant Colonel Prasad Purohit, retired Major Ramesh Upadhyay, Ajay Rahirkar, Sudhakar Dwivedi, Sudhakar Chaturvedi, and Sameer Kulkarni.
Seventeen years after two bombs concealed in motorcycles exploded near a mosque in the Muslim-majority town of Malegaon, Maharashtra, during the fasting month of Ramzan on September 29, 2008 — killing six people and injuring 101 others — a special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court in Mumbai is likely to deliver its verdict on Thursday, July 31, 2025.
Initially, some Muslim youths were arrested in the case, but the Mumbai Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) later claimed to have uncovered evidence pointing to Hindutva extremist groups.
Advertisement
On 20 January 2009, the Mumbai ATS filed a chargesheet in the Special Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) Court in Mumbai. The accused included former BJP MP (2019 to 2024) Pragya Singh Thakur, retired Indian Army Lieutenant Colonel Prasad Purohit, retired Major Ramesh Upadhyay, Ajay Rahirkar, Sudhakar Dwivedi, Sudhakar Chaturvedi, and Sameer Kulkarni. They were charged under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, including Sections 302 (murder), Section 120B (criminal conspiracy), and Section 295 (injuring or defiling places of worship), as well as under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and the Explosives Act.
Advertisement
According to the chargesheet filed by the Mumbai ATS, former BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur was accused of attending a conspiracy meeting related to the bomb blast. The most serious allegation against her was that the motorcycle used to plant the bomb belonged to her.
Retired Indian Army Lieutenant Colonel Prasad Shrikant Purohit was accused of being the mastermind behind the Malegaon blast conspiracy. He was also accused of forming a Hindu extremist organisation called ‘Abhinav Bharat’, whose aim was to carry out extremist activities to establish a Hindu nation. Purohit was also accused of arranging explosives and playing a key role in the conspiracy meetings, according to the Mumbai ATS chargesheet.
Retired Major Ramesh Upadhyay was accused of being associated with the Abhinav Bharat organisation and attending conspiracy meetings where the bomb blasts were allegedly planned, according to the Mumbai ATS chargesheet.
Ajay Rahirkar was accused of collecting and distributing money for the bomb blasts, while Sudhakar Dwivedi alias Shankaracharya alias Dayanand Pandey was alleged to have attended conspiracy meetings and used religious narratives to motivate the blast conspirators, according to the Mumbai ATS chargesheet.
Sudhakar Chaturvedi was accused of participating in conspiracy meetings, while Sameer Kulkarni was accused of being part of the conspiracy to execute the Malegaon blast, according to the Mumbai ATS chargesheet.
On April 13, 2011, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) took over the investigation from the Mumbai ATS. On April 21, 2011, the ATS filed a supplementary chargesheet in the Special NIA Court in Mumbai.
However, on July 28, 2015, special public prosecutor Rohini Salian filed an affidavit before the Bombay High Court, which was later forwarded to the Supreme Court, in which she named former NIA SP Suhas Warke, alleging that he had asked her to “go soft” in the Malegaon blast case.
“I am disclosing the name of an NIA officer, who had tried to interfere with the delivery of administration of justice, as a messenger. His name is Suhas Warke, SP, NIA, Mumbai branch,” special public prosecutor Rohini Salian’s affidavit had stated.
Rohini Salian, who appeared for the NIA in the 2008 Malegaon blast case involving Hindu extremists, said that she was asked to go soft in the case after the BJP government was sworn in at the Centre.
“An NIA officer approached me immediately after the change of government and told me in person to go soft. On June 12, he approached me for the second time and said I would no longer be appearing in the case,” Rohini Salian had told media persons in Mumbai.
On May 13, 2016, the NIA filed another supplementary chargesheet in the Special NIA Court, Mumbai. All the accused were released on bail in 2017, and on December 27, 2017, the Special NIA Court in Mumbai restarted the process of framing charges.
On October 30, 2018, charges were framed against a total of 7 accused. The first witness appeared in the court on December 3, 2018, and the examination of the last witness (witness number 323) was completed on September 4, 2023, while 40 witnesses were declared hostile.
On November 17, 2021, the NIA dropped all charges against Sadhvi Pragya Thakur and five others in the 2008 Malegaon blast case, while charges under the stringent MCOCA law were given up against all the other 10 accused, including retired Indian Army Lieutenant Colonel Prasad Purohit.
The prosecution’s arguments began on July 25, 2024, and went on until September 27, 2024. The defence completed its argument between September 30, 2024, and April 3, 2025, while the prosecution’s rebuttal argument took place from April 4, 2025, to April 19, 2025.
The Special NIA court in Mumbai is likely to deliver its verdict on Thursday, July 31, 2025.
Advertisement
