The CBI on Saturday told a special court in Mumbai that the views of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) may be sought on the discharge application of the nine accused from the minority community from the 2006 Malegoan blasts.
The nine Muslim accused had sought discharge from the case last year on the ground that the NIA had arrested the right-wing Hindu group members, who purportedly carried out the blasts. On September 26 last year, the special NIA court had directed the CBI to file their reply in connection with the discharge plea.
"Since the NIA has carried out that investigation and filed a charge-sheet on the basis of the material collected by them during further investigation, it would be appropriate if NIA is directed to file their views in the matter," said the application filed by the CBI.
The CBI further said that material collected during the investigation by the agency has been submitted in the court and it has no additional ground or material for submitting its say in the matter, either on the facts or on law, said the reply filed by the Superintendent of Police of CBI Special Task Force, Mumbai.
However, the ATS sought four weeks' time to file their say in the case. Special Judge Y D Shinde had directed CBI and ATS to file their replies after one of the accused related to a right-wing Hindu group, also arrested in the case, moved an application to the court praying to summon the ATS and CBI who has previously filed a report accusing members of the banned organisation- SIMI- behind the blast.
Manohar Singh, in the application filed in September last year, objected to discharge of the Muslim accused arrested in the case. It can be recalled that NIA in August last year did not object to the discharge applications filed by nine Muslims arrested. "It is submitted that evidence collected by NIA in further investigation is not in consonance with evidence collected by ATS and CBI.
The court may kindly pass appropriate orders in the matter," the NIA had said. The ATS had arrested nine accused - Noorul Huda Samsudoha (28), Shabbir Ahmed Masiullah (41), Raees Ahmed Rajab Ali Mansuri (35), Dr Salman Farsi Abdul Latif Aimi (40), Dr Farogh Iqbal Ahmed Magdumi (38), Mohammad Ali Alam Sheikh (42), Asif Khan Bashir Khan alias Junaid (35), Mohammad Zahid Abdul Majid Ansari (31) and Abrar Ahmed Gulam Ahmed (38) - in connection with the 2006 Malegoan blasts.
Later, all were granted bail after NIA took over the probe. The NIA, which investigated the case, found that the blast was the handiwork of the right-wing Hindu group and arrested Lokesh Sharma, Dhan Singh, Manohar Singh and Rajendra Choudhary, all of whom were charge sheeted.
The NIA's focus shifted on the right wing group after Swami Aseemanand, an accused in the 2007 Mecca Masjid blast made a confession that a right wing group was involved in the 2006 Malegoan blasts. The NIA, on May 22 filed a supplementary charge sheet against four of them and also listed number findings which contradicted the findings of ATS and CBI.
The bombings were part of a series of explosions that had taken place on September 8, 2006, in Malegaon, a communally-sensitive town in Nashik district of Maharashtra, located about 300 kms from Mumbai. The explosions, which caused the death of 37 people and injured over 125, had taken place in a Muslim cemetery, adjacent to a mosque, at around 1315 hours after the Friday prayers on the Shab-e-Baraat, a holy day.
Most of the blast victims were Muslim pilgrims. According to police, two bombs attached to bicycles had exploded, triggering a stampede. Malegaon had seen another terror act in 2008, allegedly by right wing Hindu groups and Sadhvi Pragya Singh and former Lt Col Srikant Purohit were arrested in that connection.
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