Mumbai: The Bombay High Court has extended the time by one year to conclude trial in a 2012 bomb blast case at Deccan Gymkhana in Pune. The court extended the time to conclude the trial following a request letter from the special judge to try cases under MCOCA, TADA, POTA & NIA.
“For the reasons stated in the communication dated 1st January, 2024, period to dispose of Special Case No.7 of 2013, is extended by one year from today,” a division bench of Justices Ajey Gadkari and Shyam Chadak said on February 21. The order copy was made available on Tuesday.
In-Depth Inquiry Ordered
The court has also ordered an in-depth inquiry into a significant delay in communication from a special court in Mumbai reaching the relevant department of the HC, lasting over a month.
The Special court addressed the communication on January 1 this year to the Principal Judge of the City Civil and Sessions Court, Greater Mumbai, who forwarded the same to the high court registry the next day.
Although the communication was received on January 3 by the relevant department within the High Court, it traversed various departments and reached the bench only on February 21.
While the bench extended the trial period by a year, it also directed the Registrar (Judicial-I) to conduct an in-depth inquiry into the lapse in communication and submit a report within three weeks.
“We direct the Registrar (Judicial-I) to conduct an in depth inquiry about the said lapse on the part of the concerned and submit a report to this Court within three weeks from today,” the bench noted.
The court was hearing a bail plea filed by Munib Memon, a tailor arrested by the Maharashtra Police's Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) for allegedly planting a bomb at the Deccan Gymkhana.
In 2022, Memon filed a petition seeking bail contending that the trial, which began in 2013, should have concluded in a decade. Considering the gravity of the case and the evidence, the high court last year, denied bail to Memon.
However, acknowledging the right to an expeditious trial, the high court directed that the trial be concluded by December 2023. Since the trial could not be concluded within the given timeline, the special judge sought extension of time by a year, which was granted.
The bombings occurred on August 1, 2012, injuring one person. According to the ATS, the bomb blasts were planned to avenge the death of Quatil Siddique, a member of the banned terrorist organisation Indian Mujahideen, who died in jail custody on June 8, 2012.
Of the nine accused, two are on bail, two are in Tihar jail, and the rest are in a prison near Mumbai.
