On Thursday, the NIA's special court acquitted all seven accused in the 2008 Malegaon blast case. Now, former ATS officer Mehboob Mujawar has made a significant revelation about the matter.
In a conversation with Aaj Tak, former officer Mehboob Mujawar disclosed that after the Malegaon blast, the investigating officer at the time, Paramveer Singh, and his superiors ordered him to arrest RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat.
He also revealed that there was pressure on him to conduct wrongful investigations to prove the concept of 'saffron terrorism' in the country. Mujawar stated that he resisted this as he did not want to engage in wrongdoing. Unfortunately, false cases were filed against him, but he was acquitted of all charges.
Mujawar mentioned that there was pressure on him to list deceased people as alive in the charge sheet. When he refused, then IPS officer Paramveer Singh implicated him in false cases. He emphasized that terrorism, whether saffron or green, is not right for society. Mujawar also expressed satisfaction with the court's decision in the Malegaon blast case.
What did the court say while acquitting the accused?
In the 2008 Malegaon bomb blast case, the court acquitted all accused. The court remarked that there were no concrete evidence or witnesses against the accused. Justice Lahoti noted in the verdict that the prosecution could not present solid evidence and reliable witnesses.
Justice A.K. Lahoti stated that terrorism has no religion because no religion advocates violence. Due to the lack of credible evidence, all seven accused were acquitted.
Justice Lahoti mentioned that a case cannot be advanced based merely on doubt. The prosecution failed to prove the allegations beyond doubt. This was a grave incident against society, but one cannot be held guilty based on morality alone.
The court stated that there is no evidence on record proving that Colonel Purohit brought RDX or that the bomb was assembled. There is also insufficient evidence that the bike used in the crime belonged to Sadhvi Pragya. There is no clear evidence of who threw stones post-incident or who seized the policeman's gun.
The accused included former BJP MP Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur, Lieutenant Colonel Prasad Purohit, Sudhakar Chaturvedi, and retired Ramesh Upadhyay. Notably, on September 29, 2008, a bomb exploded in a two-wheeler at Bhiku Chowk in Malegaon, killing six people and injuring 101 others. The deceased included Farheen alias Shagufta Shaikh Liaqat, Shaikh Mushtaq Yusuf, Shaikh Rafiq Mustafa, Irfan Ziaullah Khan, Syed Azhar Syed Nisar, and Haroon Shah Mohammed Shah.
