2011 Mumbai triple blasts: Accused gets bail after nearly 15 years in custody

Special judge Satyanarayan Navander said Shaikh had remained in judicial custody since 2012 and that the subsequent progress of the trial did not provide sufficient reason to deny him the same relief granted to his co-accused

MUMBAI: Nearly 15 years after his arrest as an undertrial accused in the 2011 Mumbai triple blasts case, a special MCOCA court on Wednesday granted bail to Zainul Abideen Abdul Razaque Shaikh alias Zahid, citing his prolonged incarceration and the principle of parity with two co-accused who were released on bail earlier this year.

Mumbai...13th July 2011...HT News... Bomb Blast at Dadar - HT Photo by Kunal Patil (Hindustan Times)

Special judge Satyanarayan Navander said Shaikh had remained in judicial custody since 2012 and that the subsequent progress of the trial did not provide sufficient reason to deny him the same relief granted to his co-accused, Naquee Ahmed Wasi Ahmed Shaikh and Haroon Rashid Abdul Hameed Naik, in April.

The prosecution opposed the plea, citing confessional statements, CCTV footage and other scientific evidence against Shaikh. It also told the court that 25 witnesses had been examined after the two co-accused were granted bail, leaving only a few prosecution witnesses to be examined.

However, the judge held that the trial’s progress could not outweigh the nearly 15 years Shaikh had spent in custody. The court noted that, “the constitutional consideration regarding prolonged deprivation of personal liberty remains unchanged.”

The court also relied on the principle of parity, under which similarly placed accused should ordinarily receive similar treatment unless there are circumstances distinguishing one accused from another.

The judge further made it clear that the bail order was not an assessment of the prosecution’s evidence against Shaikh.

“This Court is conscious that the allegations are extremely serious,” Navander said, adding that the application was being considered “exclusively on the constitutional ground of prolonged incarceration” and parity with the co-accused already released on bail.

The court directed Shaikh’s release on a personal recognisance bond of ₹1 lakh along with one or more solvent local sureties for the same amount. He must report to the Mumbai ATS on the first Saturday of every month between 10 am and noon until the trial ends.

He has also been barred from tampering with evidence or influencing witnesses and cannot leave the trial court’s jurisdiction without prior permission.

The case stems from the July 13, 2011, blasts at Opera House, Zaveri Bazar and Dadar, which killed 27 people and injured 127. The three cases, initially registered at DB Marg, LT Marg and Shivaji Park police stations, were later transferred to the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad and clubbed into a common case. Charges were framed in September 2019 and the trial is still underway.