Nineteen years after coordinated bomb blasts tore through Mumbai’s suburban trains, killing 189 people and injuring over 800, the Bombay High Court has acquitted all 12 individuals previously convicted in the case.
On July 11, 2006, seven powerful blasts struck Mumbai’s local trains within an 11-minute span during evening rush hour, with pressure cooker bombs placed in first-class compartments. The explosions occurred near stations including Matunga Road, Mahim Junction, Bandra, Khar Road, Jogeshwari, Bhayandar, and Borivali.
In 2015, a special court under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) had found 12 men guilty. Five were sentenced to death — Faisal Sheikh, Asif Khan, Kamal Ansari, Ehtesham Siddiqui, and Naveed Khan. The remaining seven were given life imprisonment for their roles in the alleged conspiracy.
However, a division bench of Justice Anil Kilor and Justice Shyam Chandak overturned the convictions on Monday, citing insufficient evidence and serious lapses in the prosecution’s case.
“The prosecution has completely failed to establish the charges. It is difficult to believe the accused committed the crime,” the bench stated in its ruling. The court said the convicts should be released from custody unless implicated in other pending cases.
The judgment highlighted multiple weaknesses in the prosecution’s arguments, including unreliable witness testimonies and questionable physical evidence. The bench noted that it was implausible for witnesses to identify suspects nearly 100 days after the attacks, and pointed out that explosives and materials recovered during the investigation did not conclusively link the accused to the blasts. Furthermore, the court observed that the prosecution could not even establish the exact nature of the bombs used.
With this verdict, all 12 men who were convicted nearly a decade ago are now cleared of charges and set to walk free.