A political slugfest broke out on Friday with the Congress and Samajwadi Party accusing the BJP-led NDA government of influencing the decision of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) for giving a c
A political slugfest broke out on Friday with the Congress and Samajwadi Party accusing the BJP-led NDA government of influencing the decision of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) for giving a clean chit to Sadhvi Pragya Thakur and removing the stringent MCOCA against Lt. Col. Prasad Shrikant Purohit in the 2008 Malegaon blast cases. In addition to Lt. Col. Purohit, MCOCA has also been withdrawn against nine other accused.
In a chargesheet filed in the designated NIA court in Mumbai on Friday the investigating agency claimed that “sufficient evidences have not been found against” Pragya Singh Thakur and that “prosecution against her was not maintainable”.
Senior leader Digvijay Singh, while criticising the move, said “as I had predicted BJP and RSS have started the process of saving the Sangh activists involved in terror cases. Was the DG of NIA given extension for this ”
“I will like to tell the Central government that we know that you want to save them (activists of Hindu right-wing groups). We know that your relations are with all these people involved in terrorism-related activities. This is my accusation on Prime Minister, Union home minister and the Union Cabinet who are trying to save the people belonging to Sangh involved in terror activities by putting pressure on police officers and the NIA. As I had predicted BJP and RSS have started the process of saving the Sangh activists involved in terror cases,” he added.
Senior Samajwadi Party leader and UP minister Azam Khan also said that the government had “influenced” the NIA in giving a clean chit to the Sadhvi and diluting the charges against other accused persons.
The government, however, refuted the Opposition’s allegations, saying the investigating agency worked independently and went purely by the merits of the case. Minister of state for home Kiren Rijiju said, “The government allows these agencies to work independently and does not interfere in their functioning. The decision taken by the NIA must have been based on the investigations it conducted. Justice should prevail.”
The BJP, meanwhile, welcomed the NIA’s decision saying Sadhvi Pragya was “framed”’ and suggested a probe against those officials who had carried out the initial investigations into the Malegaon blasts.
“There was nothing against her. There was conspiracy over the Malegaon and Samjhauta Express blasts and anti-national forces were fighting. People associated with politics worked against the country’s interest. I look with respect at the NIA’s decision in favour of Pragya Thakur,” BJP leader and party spokesperson Meenakshi Lekhi told the media. When asked about dilution of charges against other accused, including Lt. Col. Purohit, she said she would not give any clean chit to him or speak for or against him as she does not know the details of the case against him.
Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said the charge of the Congress party that the government is trying to influence the NIA is completely baseless. “NIA is doing its job independently,” he said.
Senior RSS functionary Indresh Kumar also alleged that the UPA government had hatched a conspiracy to target Hindutva groups over the blasts. “The UPA government had linked saffron and Hindutva with terrorism. There cannot be a bigger crime, sin and injustice. That is why the UPA government hatched a political conspiracy,” he added.
NIA director-general Sharad Kumar also denied there was any dilution in the case. “The chargesheet is based totally on investigations and the merits of the case,” he told the media.
Initial investigations into the case were conducted by Mumbai ATS joint commissioner Hemant Karkare, who was killed during the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack. The ATS had booked 16 people but filed chargesheets against 14 accused in a Mumbai court. Following this both Sadhvi Pragya and Lt. Col. Purohit and Pragya had moved several applications before the Bombay high court and Supreme Court challenging the chargesheet and imposing MCOCA against them.
Apart from Sadhvi Pragya, others against whom the charges have been dropped are Shiv Narayan Kalsangra, Shyam Bhavarlal Sahu, Praveen Takkalki, Lokesh Sharma and Dhan Singh Choudhury. The NIA in its chargesheet also mentioned that no offence is made out under MCOCA where a statement given before a SP level officer is admissible as evidence. “In furtherance of the same, the confessional statements recorded under provisions of MCOCA by ATS Mumbai have not been relied upon by the NIA in submitting the present final report,” the agency said in its chargesheet.
Now that MCOCA against Lt. Col. Purohit and nine others has been withdrawn, they would be tried for charges that include murder and conspiracy under the provisions of the anti-terror law UAPA, IPC, Arms Act and Explosives Substances Act. The NIA also clarified that investigations into the case were delayed as the accused persons had filed various petitions in higher courts, including the ones regarding applicability of MCOCA.
Special public prosecutor in the case Avinash Rasal said he was not informed about the filing of the chargesheet by the NIA. “I have shown my displeasure but I am not resigning from the case as the NIA official have apologised and regretted. The matter is pacified now,” Mr Rasal said.
