Mumbai : The Bombay High Court on Monday acquitted all 12 men who were convicted of the 2006 Mumbai train bombings that killed 189 people and injured over 800. A division bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Gauri Godse read out the operative part of the order, pointing out serious flaws in the prosecution’s case.
The court observed that key witnesses were unreliable, identification parades were questionable, and confessional statements were extracted through torture. “The defence had raised serious questions about the test identification parade. Many witnesses remained silent for unusually long periods, some over four years, and then suddenly identified the accused. This is abnormal,” the bench noted.
Several others failed to explain how they could suddenly recall and identify the accused after years. The judges also highlighted procedural lapses. “Some witnesses were not even examined during the trial. As for recoveries like RDX and other explosive material, the prosecution could not establish that the evidence was sacrosanct until it reached the Forensic Science Laboratory,” the bench said.
Observing “non-application of mind”, the High Court concluded that the prosecution had “thoroughly failed” to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt. “It is difficult to say that the prosecution can sustain its charges,” the bench held, quashing the special Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) court’s October 2015 judgment that had sentenced five to death and seven to life imprisonment. The 2006 Mumbai train blasts remain one of India’s deadliest terror attacks, with seven bombs exploding in first-class compartments during peak hours on the Western Railway line.
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