livelaw.in Mumbai, July 31, 2025 — In a stunning yet much awaited verdict, seven accused of Malegaon 2008 bomb blast were acquitted by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) Special Court in Mumbai today for lack of evidence. Those who have been released include BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur and Lt. Col. Prasad Purohit, who have been in the media and political glare following the attack.
The 2008 Blast That Rocked Maharashtra
The blast in Malegaon had taken place on September 29, 2008, in the communally-sensitive textile town of Malegaon in north Maharashtra district of Nashik. A motorcycle equipped with an IED exploded near Bhikku Chowk that killed 6 and injured more than 100, predominantly Muslims offering evening Ramzan prayers. The explosion incited national fury and a labyrinthine investigation that would last nearly 20 years.
The investigation was first carried out by Maharashtra ATS and later handed to the NIA in 2011. The case broke new ground by focusing attention on the concept of “Hindu terror,” with many of the accused associated with right-wing activist groups.
Who Was Involved?
The accused included:
Pragya Singh Thakur: The BJP MP, who was associated with right-wing groups earlier
Lt. Col. Prasad Purohit — Army officer charged with helping make the bomb
Released: Ramesh Upadhyay, Ajay Rahirkar, Sameer Kulkarni, and 2 others
They were charged under the UAPA, IPC and Explosive Substances Act, the court said.
The Sanyasi-Turned-Politician
Among the case’s most dramatic turns is the evolution of Pragya Thakur from an accused to a saffron-robed spiritual leader, and now to a Member of Parliament from Bhopal. She took selfies after being charged with terror but won the 2019 election on a BJP ticket, claiming she was a victim of a political conspiracy.
The NIA Court Verdict
“Suspicion cannot be a substitute for legal proof,” the Judge A.K. Lahoti said while delivering the verdict on July 31, 2025, adding that more than 100 of 323 witnesses had become hostile. The prosecution, the court held, had not connected any of the accused to the blast or any conspiracy to cause it.
What Happens Now?
The decision has provoked mixed reactions. BJP leaders welcomed the acquittals as a victory of truth. But opposition parties and civil rights groups have decried the credibility of the process and worried about the message it was sending to the victims of communal violence.
The Malegaon case, too, joins the ever-lengthening list of protracted terrorism trials in India which culminate with still more questions than closures.
