A sessions court on Monday refused temporary bail to the alleged gunman and main accused Devendra Jagtap in the 2010 murder of lawyer Shahid Azmi, known for defending accused persons in the Mumbai serial train blasts of 2011 and 26/11 terror attack cases.
Jagtap had claimed the relief on the grounds of the High Power Committee’s (HPC) recommendations last year for the release of prisoners on interim bail for decongestion of prisons.
The court said in its order that the applicant is prosecuted for the offences of murder, criminal conspiracy, offences under the Arms Act and the Bombay Police Act. It said further that the guideline dated May 14, 2020 of the HPC has debarred the accused in the offence punishable under Sec 302 of the IPC (murder) for considering their interim bail plea. It stated that considering his involvement in the serious nature of crime, he is not entitled to be enlarged on interim bail.
In 2017, a sessions court had rejected the bail application of Jagtap, who had claimed bail on the grounds of delay in the beginning of trial.
Azmi was shot dead in his Mumbai office at Taximen’s Colony, Kurla on February 11, 2010. Four men including Jagtap face trial for the murder. Two among them are out on bail. Gangster Santhosh Shetty had been discharged from the case in 2014.
