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Malegaon blast verdict: Who is Pragya Thakur? 5 things about former BJP MP
A special NIA delivered its verdict on the Malegaon blast case, which killed six and injured over 100, after nearly 17 years.
Nearly 17 years after a blast claimed six lives and injured over 100 people in the communally sensitive town of Malegaon in Maharashtra, a special NIA court pronounced its verdict in the case on Thursday.
The National Investigation Agency court has acquitted all seven accused in the 2008 Malegaon blast case, including Bharatiya Janata Party's former MP Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur, lieutenant colonel Prasad Purohit, and five others.
They were tried under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and various sections of the Indian Penal Code.
Major (retired) Ramesh Upadhyay, Ajay Rahirkar, Sudhakar Dwivedi, Sudhakar Chaturvedi and Sameer Kulkarni were the other accused in the case.
The NIA, which conducted the probe into the case, had sought "commensurate punishment" for the accused.
Who is Pragya Thakur? 5 things about former BJP MP
- Malegaon blast accused: Pragya Thakur was one of the seven accused in the 2008 Malegaon blast case that killed six people and injured over 100. She was arrested in 2008 and charged under the UAPA and IPC, including for murder and conspiracy. The NIA alleges she was part of a larger conspiracy to incite communal violence.
- Won Bhopal Lok Sabha seat: Pragya Thakur had contested the 2019 Lok Sabha election from Bhopal constituency, running against Digvijaya Singh of the Congress. She won her debut contest by a margin of 364,822 votes.
- Claimed of innocence: In her final court statement, Thakur had called the charges against her “illegal” and “motivated by malafide intent". She alleged the evidence was manipulated and that she was falsely implicated.
- Controversial public remarks: Thakur has made several controversial statements, including calling Nathuram Godse (Gandhi’s assassin) a “patriot". The remarks caused a national uproar and drew criticism from even her party’s top leadership.
- Sadhvi: Before entering politics, Thakur was associated with the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad and identified herself as a “sadhvi.”
