THE JHARKHAND STORY DESK
New Delhi, July 24: The Supreme Court has put an interim stay on the Bombay High Court’s decision to acquit 12 accused in the 2006 Mumbai train serial blasts case.
A bench of Justices M M Sundresh and N Kotiswar Singh issued this order while hearing a Special Leave Petition (SLP) filed by the Maharashtra government.
However, the Supreme Court clarified that the acquitted individuals will not be taken into custody again. It also issued notices to the concerned parties, seeking their response within a month.
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During the hearing, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta assured the court that the government does not intend to send the accused back to jail.
Following this directive, the arrests remain barred, but the case has now returned under judicial scrutiny.
High Court Acquitted Accused Citing Lack of Evidence
On July 21, a division bench of the Bombay High Court comprising Justice Anil Kilor and Justice Justice Shyam Chandak ruled that the prosecution had failed to produce sufficient and reliable evidence, making it impossible to uphold the convictions.
Based on these observations, the High Court acquitted 11 of the 12 accused, while the 12th had died during the appeal process.
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189 Killed in Mumbai’s Deadliest Train Bombings
The serial blasts occurred on July 11, 2006, during peak hours in Mumbai’s local trains, when seven bombs exploded in succession. The attacks shook not just Mumbai but the entire nation, leaving 189 people dead and over 700 injured.
Investigating agencies described it as one of the most meticulously planned terror conspiracies in the country. Maharashtra ATS carried out multiple arrests in connection with the case, and in 2015, a trial court convicted 12 individuals—sentencing five to death and seven to life imprisonment.
