Team Clarion
MUMBAI — The invocation of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) against Malegaon 2008 blasts accused Col. Purohit, Sadhvi Pragya Thakur and others is valid, said special court of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) here on Saturday. The court passed the order while rejecting the petition of key accused Col. Purohit and others wherein they had said the invocation of UAPA against them was illegal.
The court also ordered regular hearing in the case from 26th Oct. The saffron terror accused sought stay on the order for four weeks but the court rejected their plea after opposition from the counsels of Jamiat Ulama Maharashtra (Arshad Madani).
When the judge Vinod Padalkar delivered order around 11:30 am today, the counsels of the saffron terror accused urged the court to put a stay on his order for four weeks. Opposing the appeal, Jamiat’s counsel submitted a three-page plea and told the court that the victims of the blasts have been awaiting justice for 10 years and as per Section 19 in the NIA Act, there is a provision for day-to-day hearing of the cases under NIA, so the court should not give any relief to the accused and should frame charges against them. Jamiat’s counsel also said that the Supreme Court has also directed completion of hearing in this case as early as possible. After hearing the argument, the judge rejected the stay plea of the accused. However, while ordering resumption of regular hearing from 26th Oct., the court allowed the accused to move the high court before that if they want.
The judge said that both parties mentioned over 100 cases during the hearing in the last one month, and he reached the conclusion that the trial of the accused under UAPA in this case is correct. He also said the issues raised by them will be considered during the hearing.
The detail verdict will come on Monday.
Expressing satisfaction over today’s court order, Gulzar Azmi, legal cell head of Jamiat Ulama Maharashtra said that Adv Sharif Shaikh raised storng points in the court. He told the court that as per Section 362 of the Criminal Procedure Code, lower court has no right to change its own order. The lawyer told the court that his predecessor judge had ordered that sections 16 and 18 of UAPA will be used against these Malegaon blasts accused and charges will be framed according.
Azmi alleged that saffron terror accused do not want the court to start hearing and that is why they use new tactic every day — sometimes they file discharge plea and sometimes they challenge UAPA and thus they waste the time of the court.
Besides Col. Purohit and Sadhvi Pragya Thakur, other accused in the case include Major Ramesh Upadhyaya, Samir Kulkarni, Ajay Rahekar, Sudhakar Dwedi and Sudhakar Chaturvedi.
At least 10 people were killed and several others were wounded in the serial blasts near a mosque and graveyard on 29th Sept. 2008 in Malegaon of Maharashtra. Soon after the blasts, several local Muslims were arrested by the police for the blasts. However, all of them were acquitted by the court.
