SC grants bail to Lt.Col Shrikant Purohit in Malegaon case

The Supreme Court on Monday granted bail to 2008 Malegaon blast case accused Lt Col Srikant Prasad Purohit.

A bench of Justices R K Agrawal and Abhay Manohar Sapre allowed the plea challenging Bombay HC order that had declined the relief to him. The National Investigation Agency had earlier admitted before the court “several inconsistencies” in the case. But it had opposed bail plea by Purohit, saying these things, including retractions of witnesses, could be examined during the trial only.

Purohit, for his part, claimed, “he was caught in political cross-fire”. He cited several factors like serious indictment of Maharashtra Anti-Terror Squad by the NIA, no framing of charges despite his nine years of incarceration and no inquiry report by the Indian Army against him. He sought at least interim bail till the trial court considered the charges. 

After taking over the probe in 2011, the NIA in its investigation report claimed ATS had planted explosive substance RDX to frame Purohit.

Senior



advocate Harish Salve had argued for Purohit in the apex court. NIA counsel Additional Solicitor General Maninder Singh and senior advocate Amrendra Sharan, representing one of the victims had opposed the petition.“The case against my client is that he attended meetings of 'Abhinav Bharat'. My boss in Army acceded to during his cross examination in Court of Inquiry that he was giving vital information to him. Nine years have gone by no inquiry report has come. He is still serving as Army officer and has so far not been removed,” Salve had said.

In 2006, Nasik Police Commissioner commended him for his work, he said. Purohit challenged the Bombay High Court order of April that refused relief to him but enlarged co-accused Pragya Singh Thakur on bail. Purohit, a Military Intelligence officer, is accused in the case relating to a bomb blast on September 29, 2008, at Malegaon, a communally-sensitive textile town in Nasik district of north Maharashtra. The explosion had claimed lives of six people and left over 100 other injured.