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What is Malegaon blast case? Verdict now out, how 17-yr-long probe progressed
Blast took place at a chowk area in Malegaon in September 2008; it was suspected the culprits chose Ramazan to create communal rift
A special court in Mumbai acquitted all accused in the 2008 Malegaon blast case, including former BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur and Lieutenant Colonel Prasad Purohit.
The judgement comes nearly 17 years after a bomb exploded in a crowded area in Malegaon in Maharashtra's Nashik district, killing six people and injuring 95.
It was alleged that the bomb was strapped to a motorcycle, which was traced to Pragya Thakur. However, the NIA court on Thursday ruled that the prosecution failed to prove that a bomb was placed in the motorcycle in question.
The incident was claimed to be the first terror attack in the country in which a group of seven alleged Hindu extremists, including former BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur and a serving army officer, Lt Col Prasad Purohit, were prosecuted.
The blast killed six people and injured 95 others.
Also Read: Malegaon Blast Case Verdict Live Updates: All 7 accused acquitted by NIA court
The special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court will pronounce its judgement in what was one of the country's longest-running terror cases where the accused have been charged under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 (UAPA) and the anti-terrorism law.
What was the 2008 Malegaon blast?
The blast took place at a chowk in a Muslim-dominated area of Malegaon on September 29, 2008. It was the month of Ramadan, when the Muslim community observe fasting.
It was suspected that those behind the blast had chosen the timing in the Muslim holy month, just before the Hindu Navratri festival, to create communal rifts, The Indian Express said in a report.
The investigation was transferred to the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) from the local police.
Though it was claimed that 101 people were injured after the blast, the NIA court ruled that only 95 people were injured, adding that there was manipulation in some medical certificates.
What ATS investigation revealed?
The ATS suspected that the improvised explosive device (IED) had been planted on an LML Freedom motorcycle, which led to the blast. The probe revealed that the registration number of the motorcycle was fake and the engine number and chassis number had been erased.
The two-wheeler was then sent to a forensic laboratory for restoration of the erased numbers.
Also Read: Malegaon bomb blast victims seek death penalty for accused
The probe agency revealed that the owner of the bike was Pragya Singh Thakur, and she was arrested on October 23, 2008. Upon interrogation, the ATS arrested the other accused.
Two weeks after the blast, a total of 11 persons, including Col Purohit, were arrested. The accused had allegedly formed an organisation called Abhinav Bharat and were charged under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act, 1999 (MCOCA).
The ATS filed a chargesheet in January 2009 in which it named 11 persons as accused, and said they believed they carried out the blast “in revenge against terrorist acts by Muslim men”.
Probe transferred to NIA
The Malegaon blast case was transferred to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in 2011. While the NIA continued its investigation, the accused approached courts challenging the MCOCA charges against them, under which their confessions were recorded.
In 2016, the NIA filed a supplementary charge sheet in the case and dropped the charges under MCOCA. The NIA said that the manner in which the organised crime law was invoked by the ATS was “questionable”.
The NIA also claimed to have found many holes in the evidence collected by the ATS against Thakur, adding that the evidence existed only against seven out of 11 accused.
The probe agency also said that the NIA, registered in Thakur’s name, was in possession of Kalsangra and was used by him before the blast.
Also Read: NIA court set to deliver verdict in Malegaon bomb blast case after 17 years
"The motorcycle was owned by Thakur but it was being used by Ramchandra Kalsangra, an absconding accused. Witnesses said the motorcycle was in his possession for at least one-and-a-half years before the blast," an NIA official told Hindustan Times.
It also claimed that the ATS's case relied on confessions, which was admissible as evidence in court, but added that the ATS had invoked MCOCA in haste.
NIA wanted Pragya Thakur's name dropped
While the NIA called for dropping Pragya Singh Thakur's name as an accused, a special court said it was difficult to accept her claim that she had no connection with the blast.
Though the court accepted the NIA's suggestion that MCOCA cannot be invoked in the case, it said that seven accused — Sadhiv Thakur, Prasad Purohit, Ramesh Upadhyay, Sameer Kulkarni, Sudhakar Onkarnath Chaturvedi, Ajay Rahirkar, and Sudhakar Dwivedi — would face trial under UAPA, IPC, and the Explosive Substances Act, 1908.
The court discharged Shivnarayan Kalsangra, Shyamlal Sahu and Pravin Takalki in the case for lack of evidence. It added that the two accused, Rakesh Dhawde and Jagdish Mhatre, would face trial only under the Arms Act.
Trial in Malegaon case
A special court in Mumbai conducted the trial of the seven accused. The trial, which started in 2018, got over on April 19, 2025, and the case was reserved for judgement.
The charges included UAPA sections 16 (committing terrorist act) and 18 (conspiring to commit terrorist act) and various IPC sections, including 120 (b) (criminal conspiracy), 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder), 324 (voluntarily causing hurt) and 153 (a) (promoting enmity between two religious groups).
The NIA, in its final argument, submitted that the Malegaon blast was orchestrated by the conspirators to terrorise a section of Muslim community, disrupt essential services, create communal tensions, and threaten the state's internal security, according to news agency PTI.
