PM Modi ‘played dirtiest politics’ on terrorism: Former MP
Former Memmber of Parliament and AIMIM Maharashtra President, Imtiaz Jaleel, Tuesday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi ‘played dirtiest politics’ on terrorism
[AIMIM Maharashtra President Imtiaz Jaleel with NisarAhmed in Malegaon. Nisar Ahmed's son was killed in the 2008 Malegaon blast on September 29, 2008. He was an intervener in the case. (Image: ummid.com)]
Malegaon: Former Memmber of Parliament and AIMIM Maharashtra President, Imtiaz Jaleel, Tuesday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi ‘played dirtiest politics’ on terrorism.
Imtiaz Jaleel said this in Malegaon. Jaleel was in the Textile City to meet the 2008 Malegaon blast victims after the Special NIA Court judgment.
2008 Malegaon Blast
A powerful bomb, as per the ATS charge sheet, fitted in a motorcycle, exploded at Bhikku Chowk in Malegaon on September 29, 2006.
Six Malegaonians – including 7-year-old girl Farheen, were killed and more than 100 others were injured in the terrorist attack executed in the Holy month of Ramadan and two days before Eid in Malegaon.
The motorcycle fitted with the bomb was parked few meters away from the ladies market at a junction where hundreds of people are present at any given time.
The deadly terror attack was first investigated by Maharashtra ATS led by Hemant Karkare. Karkare was assassinated during the 2008 Mumbai terrorist attack. Before his tragic death, Hemand Karkare in his painstaking investigation unearthed the involvement of the Hindus in the bomb blast.
The ATS in its charge sheet said the investigating agencies traced the motorcycle to Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur in whose name it was registered. Further investigation in the case led to the arrests of Col Prohit, a serving army officer, and others.
Two years after the BJP came to power in 2014, the investigation was handed over to the NIA. In the meantime, Special Public Prosecutor Rohini Salian, who was looking after the case, publicly accused that she was asked to “go soft” on the accused.
In another indication of where the case is leading to, Sadhvi Pragya Singh, one of the key accused, was fielded by the BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections as the party candidate. She contested the election against former MP Chief Minister Digvijaya Singh from Bhopal and won.
On July 31, 2025, Special NIA Court acquitted all the seven accused. The Court in its judgment said there is a “strong suspicion of the involvement of the accused” but “mere suspicion cannot lead to conviction”.
In over 1,000 page judgment, Justice Ak Lahoti of the NIA Court in Mumbai said the prosecution could not produce sufficient evidence to prove the charges against the accused and acquitted them, as per his order, “extending them benefit of doubt”.
"Dirtiest Politics on Terrorism Played by PM Modi"
Responding on the Malegaon blast and Court's judgment while talking to media in Malegaon, Imtiaz Jaleel said, it is not the Congress but the BJP, in particular PM Modi, “played the worst politics on terrorism”.
“They say Congress played politics on terrorism (by linking Hindus with terrorism). The fact is that the one who played the dirtiest politics on terrorism is none other than Narendra Damodardas Modi, the Prime Minister of this country who fielded a terror accused in the election as the party candidate”, Imtiaz Jaleel said.
“(As if) There was no qualified person other than the Sadhvi, a terror accused.. This is why they fielded her from Bhopal and sent her to Lok Sabha, and a message was given to the whole world that in our country a terror accused can be a member of the Lok Sabha”, he said.
Imtiaz Jaleel further said that if the government does not challenge the NIA Court’s verdict, the High Court and Supreme Court have the power to take suo moto action.
“The courts have the power to take suo moto action and ask the government to file an appeal, like it did, in the case of Mumbai train blast judgment”, he said.
"A serving Army Officer cannot be arrest without evidence"
Commenting on the arrest of Col Prohit, a serving Army Officer, in the Malegaon blast case, Imtiaz Jaleel said there were very strong evidence against him.
“In the absence of strong evidence, a serving army office, that too the rank of Lt Col, cannot be charged in a terror case”, he said.
Imtiaz Jaleel said former ATS Chief Hemant Karkare after a thorough investigation found evidence against him that were shared with the government and higher officials in the Indian Army.
Imtiaz Jaleel also condemned the BJP and other Hindutva groups for celebrating the acquittal of the 2008 Malegaon blast accused.
“They are making fun of the martyrdom of Hemant Karkare”, he said.
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