2006 Mumbai blast case
The Maharashtra government on Tuesday approached the Supreme Court challenging the Bombay High Court’s decision to acquit all twelve accused in the 2006 Mumbai train blasts case.
A decade earlier, a special court had sentenced five of the accused to death and seven others to life imprisonment. The Special Leave Petition (SLP), filed under the title The State of Maharashtra v. Kamal Ahmed Mohd. Vakil Ansari and Others, seeks to overturn the High Court’s acquittal order.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta mentioned the SLP before Chief Justice of India BR Gavai and requested an urgent hearing. “It is a serious matter. SLP is ready. Please list it tomorrow. There is urgency,” Mehta told the court.
In response, CJI Gavai said, “We read 8 accused released already,” and agreed to list the case on the following day.
The case involves the serial bomb blasts that took place on July 11, 2006, in Mumbai’s local trains on the Western Railway line. Seven bombs exploded in first-class coaches during evening peak hours, killing 187 people and injuring more than 800. The attacks led to a large-scale investigation and a lengthy trial under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA).
In October 2015, a special MCOCA court convicted twelve individuals. It sentenced five of them — Kamal Ansari, Mohammad Faisal Ataur Rahman Shaikh, Ehtesham Qutubuddin Siddiqui, Naveed Hussain Khan, and Asif Khan — to death. All five were found guilty of planting the bombs. Kamal Ansari died due to COVID-19 in 2021 while in Nagpur Central Jail.
Seven others Tanveer Ahmed Ansari, Mohammed Majid Shafi, Shaikh Mohammed Ali Alam, Mohammed Sajid Margub Ansari, Muzzammil Ataur Rahman Shaikh, Suhail Mehmood Shaikh, and Zameer Ahmed Latifur Rehman Shaikh had received life terms from the trial court. All the convicts filed appeals against their sentences. The trial court had also sent the death penalty orders to the Bombay High Court for confirmation, as required under Section 366 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC). The High Court later acquitted all twelve.
Swastika Sruti is a Senior Sub Editor at NewsX Digital with 5 years of experience shaping stories that matter. She loves tracking politics- national and global trends, and never misses a chance to dig deeper into policies and developments. Passionate about what’s happening around us, she brings sharp insight and clarity to every piece she works on. When not curating news, she’s busy exploring what’s next in the world of public interest. You can reach her at [swastika.newsx@gmail.com]
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