2008 Malegaon blast case: All you need to know

Nearly 17 years after the tragic blast rocked the communally sensitive town of Malegaon in Nashik district, a special court in Mumbai is set to deliver the verdict in the case which has strong political overtones.

The blast on September 29, 2008, during the holy month of Ramzan and on the eve of Navratri festivities claimed six lives and injured 100 others in Malegaon.

A special court in Mumbai conducted the trial of the accused, against whom cases were registered in Indian Penal Code and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

Additional Sessions Judge A K Lahoti, who had presided over the trial, had posted the case for judgment on May 8.

The seven accused who faced trial are former BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur, former Military Intelligence official Lieutenant Colonel Prasad Purohit (Retd), Major Ramesh Upadhyay (Retd), Ajay Rahirkar, Sameer Kulkarni, Sudhakar Chaturvedi, and Sudhakar Dhar Dwivedi.

The special court, on October 30, 2018, framed charges against seven accused under the stringent UAPA and IPC.

They are facing trial under sections 16 (committing terrorist act) and 18 (conspiring to commit terrorist act) of the UAPA and under IPC sections 120 (b) (criminal conspiracy), 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder), 324 (voluntarily causing hurt) and 153 (a) (promoting enmity between two religious groups).

Initially, the probe was conducted by the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) led by Special Inspector General of Police Hemant Karkare, who was killed during the 26/11 terror attack. The ATS had filed the charge sheet in 2009, however, later, the case was transferred to the National Investigation Agency (NIA), which filed a supplementary charge sheet in 2016.

In its charge sheet, while the NIA aligned with the ATS probe, it differed on certain aspects and recommended dropping of the charges under Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA), which was accepted by the court.

The hearing of evidence in the case was closed in September 2023 after 323 witnesses deposed, 34 of whom turned hostile.

Case in nutshell

Date: September 29, 2008

Time: 9:35 pm

Total blasts: One

Place: Near a hotel at Bhikkhu Chowk

Casualties: 6 killed, 101 injured

Timing: On the eve of Navratri, during the Ramzan month

Investigations: By ATS and subsequently, NIA joined the probe

Organisations involved: Hindu fundamentalist groups like Abhinav Bharat

Seven facing trial

Sadhvi Pragyasingh Chandrapal Singh Thakur alias Swami Purnachetanand Giri (Her LML Freedom was used in the blast)

Major Ramesh Upadhyaya (Retd) (Pune resident, accused of imparting training and teaching bomb making)

Sameer Kulkarni alias Chanakya Sameer (Hails from Pune, helped procure material for making the bomb)

Ajay alias Raja Rahirkar (Pune-based treasurer of Abhinav Bharat)

Lt Col Prasad Purohit (Retd) (Key conspirator, motivator of the group, helped procure RDX)

Sudhakar Dhar Dwivedi alias Dayanand Pandey alias Swami Amrutanand Devtirth (self-proclaimed Shankaracharya, resident of J&K, a key conspirator)

Sudhakar Onkarnath Chaturvedi alias Chanakya Sudhakar (Resident of Thane, weapons were found with him, was part of planning)

Accused Discharged

- Shivnarayan Kalsangra

- Shyamlal Sahu

- Pravin Takalki alias Mutalik

Two wanted accused:

- Ramji alias Ramchandra Kalsangra (Resident of Indore, planted bomb)

- Sandeep Dange (Resident of Indore, planted bomb)

(It has also been reported on the basis of claims of a police officer that the two wanted accused had died in police custody)

Timeline | Malegaon blast: The case so far

September 29, 2008: Blast at Bhikku Chowk at Malegaon on the eve of Navratri in which 6 persons were killed and 101 others injured

November 4-5, 2008: Lt Col Prasad Shrikant Purohit arrested

November 26-29, 2008: 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai, Special IGP Hemant Karkare, the chief investigator of the Malegaon case, laid down his life

January 20, 2009: Charge sheet of 4,528 pages filed under sections of Indian Penal Code, MCOCA and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and Explosive Substances Act.

July 31, 2009: MCOCA charges dropped

July 19, 2010: Bombay High Court reinstates MCOCA charges

December 2010: NIA comes into the picture in the case

May 23, 2013: NIA files charge sheet in Mumbai’s special court

July 24, 2015: Then Special Public Prosecutor Rohini Salian claims about pressure to go “soft” in the case

April 15, 2016, NIA said it doesn’t favour or oppose the discharge of 2006 Malegaon accused

December 2016: Suspended police officer Mahiboob Mujawar claims two absconders are Ramji alias Ramchandra Kalsangra and Sandeep Dange killed by police, NIA assures probe

April 25, 2017: Col Purohit’s bail rejected by Bombay High Court, Sadhvi Pragyasinh Thakur gets bail

August 21, 2017: Supreme Court grants bail to Col Purohit

August 23, 2017: Col Purohit comes out of Taloja Central Prison

December 27, 2017: MCOCA case against Col Purohit, Sadhvi Pragya dropped

October 30, 2018: Charges framed against seven accused

July 25, 2024: Final hearing commences before NIA court

April 19, 2025: Trial court fix May 8 for pronouncing judgement