2006 Malegaon Blast Case: Bombay High Court Overturns Charges Against Four Accused
Court Ruling
The Bombay High Court has annulled the charges against four individuals involved in the 2006 Malegaon blast case. This ruling, delivered on April 22, 2026, comes six months after a special court had previously framed charges against them based on a chargesheet provided by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).
A bench comprising Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Shyam C Chandak ruled in favor of the defendants—Manohar Narwaria, Rajendra Chaudhary, Dhan Singh, and Lokesh Sharma—allowing their appeal against the special court’s order from September 2025. The special court had charged them with murder and criminal conspiracy under the Indian Penal Code (IPC), alongside sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, initiating preparations for a trial.
Background of the Case
The Malegaon blast, initially registered on September 8, 2006, named unknown persons as suspects. The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) later arrested nine Muslim men among a total of 13 individuals charged in connection with the incident, while four others were deemed wanted.
According to ATS, the conspiracy was allegedly planned during a meeting at a wedding of one of the accused in May 2006. The ATS filed the first chargesheet on December 21, 2006, followed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) taking over the case on February 5, 2007, submitting a supplementary chargesheet naming the same accused.
On April 4, 2011, the case was transferred to the NIA. This occurred after Swami Aseemanand, who was a suspect in other blast cases, claimed in a magistrate’s statement that the Malegaon bombing was executed by “his boys.” Although Aseemanand later recanted his statement, the NIA’s investigation led to a supplementary chargesheet dismissing the involvement of the previously detained Muslim men and including the current appellants along with four more suspects, including deceased right-wing activist Sunil Joshi.
Subsequent Developments
A special court discharged the nine Muslim men in 2016, despite the NIA’s opposition to this decision. This discharge is currently subject to an appeal that has been pending in the High Court since 2019.
The High Court had previously granted bail to the four appellants in 2019, reasoning that they had faced more than six years of incarceration without undergoing trial. The court emphasized that the special court should have considered the chargesheets filed by both the ATS and the CBI in its analysis.
In January 2026, the appellants’ advocate, Kaushik Mhatre, challenged the NIA’s case by pointing out the absence of eyewitnesses. He further contended that the discharge of the other accused in 2016 was improperly conducted and noted that Aseemanand had not been recognized as a credible witness in other cases, leading courts to dismiss his confession.
On January 22, 2026, the High Court identified a “prima facie case for interference,” instructing the special court to halt the trial proceedings pending further orders.
