Mumbai, Feb 10: The Bombay High Court on Tuesday granted bail to Nadim Akthar Shaikh, who was arrested in connection with the July 13, 2011 triple blasts case that killed 27 people and injured 127.
A bench of Justices Ajey Gadkari and Shyam Chandak allowed Shaikh’s bail plea, citing long incarceration and delay in trial. The detailed order copy is awaited.
Court observations
The bench remarked that the accused has been behind bars for over a decade and that there was no likelihood of the trial getting completed in the near future.
The court directed Shaikh’s release on furnishing a personal bond of Rs 1 lakh along with one or more sureties of the same amount, among other conditions.
Earlier bail plea rejected
Shaikh approached the high court in May 2022 after a special court rejected his bail plea. He sought bail on the grounds of long incarceration pending trial in the case.
His advocate, Mubin Solkar, argued that he has been languishing in jail for over a decade. His plea claimed that he is innocent and falsely implicated in the case.
Second accused granted bail
He is the second person to be granted bail in the case. In November last year, the HC had released Kafeel Ahmed Mohammed Ayub, 65, on bail, observing that the possibility of the trial concluding in the near future was “bleak” and noting that the senior citizen was suffering from age-related ailments.
About the 2011 blasts
On July 13, 2011, three explosions occurred at Dadar, Zaveri Bazaar and Opera House in Mumbai, claiming 27 lives and injuring more than 100 others.
Charges and accused
The investigating agency charged 11 persons in the case, including suspected operatives of the terror group Indian Mujahideen (IM).
The accused were booked by the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) under charges related to criminal conspiracy, murder, attempt to murder, causing hurt, and under relevant sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA).
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One of the accused, Kawal Pthreja, an alleged hawala operator, died during the pendency of the trial. Yasin Bhatkal, a key IM operative facing the death penalty for the Hyderabad blasts, is among those charged in the triple blasts case.
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