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Malegaon: As the
Special Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) court
in Mumbai Tuesday dismissed the bail
application of the Muslim youths arrested in the 2006 Malegaon
blast case, relatives and activists expressed shock at the verdict
and said their faith has been shaken. Nevertheless, they said they
would not give up hope and would approach the High Court.
"We are fighting for justice
since last more than four years. Today we were quite hopeful that
justice to these innocent youths would be done and they woul be
released on bail. The ruling is disappointing", Jamil Ahmed, elder
brother of one of the accused said to ummid.com on phone from
Mumbai.
"But we have not yet given hope.
These youths are innocent and wrongly framed in the case.
Discussions on the verdict are on and we will definitely move to
the High Court for an appeal", he added.
Advocate Nehal Ansari, one of the
defence counsels who appeared on behalf of the Muslim accused,
also expressed surprise over the court
ruling and said, "In fact after Swami Aseemanand's confession all
charges against these youths should have been dropped. But since
CBI has already been granted permission for re-investigation, we
applied for bail."
"We will be moving to the High court
against the ruling once we get the certified copy", he added.
Community leaders and activists
associated with Kul Jamaati Tanzeem also expressed shock over the
verdict but blamed the government's lackluster attitude for the
same.
"Today's MCOCA Court order is
disappointing. But, it is because of the investigating agencies,
which at the behest of the state government, did not bring the
facts in front of the court. They are against the release of these
innocent youths since beginning. They have misled the court",
leader of the Kul Jamaati Tanzeem Maulana Ab Hameed Azhari said
while speaking to ummid.com.
The nine Muslim accused had moved to
the special court January 17 seeking bail on the basis of the
confessional statement of Swami Aseemanand, who is allegedly
associated with Hindu terrorist groups and has confessed about his
role in the 2006 Malegaon and other blasts. The
Special Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime
Act (MCOCA) court, however, rejected their bail application today.
A series of blasts struck
Malegaon on September 08 in 2006 ahead of Shab-e-Barat, a
Muslim festival when thousands of people were busy offering Friday
prayers at the Hamidia Masjid. Another blast occurred at nearby
Mushawerat chowk few minutes later. 32 people had been killed and
more than 300 were injured in the blasts, most of them being
children.
The Anti Terrorist Squad (ATS)
investigation of the 2006 Malegaon blast is receiving flak ever
since it arrested the Muslim youths in the attack on a mosque in
which the victims were all Muslims. Doubts were raised over the
investigation also by the families of the victims.
After much of
an outcry the state government had decided to hand over the
investigation to the CBI. But it was done only after the ATS filed
its chargesheet accusing the Muslim youths of masterminding the
terror attack.
The case took an interesting turn when Swami Aseemanand,
one of the accused arrested in Mecca Masjid and other blast
cases, admitted in his confession made before a magistrate that the
Muslim youths arrested in 2006 blast case were not guilty.
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