2008 Malegaon Blast: SC stays trial court proceedings on accused plea citing lack of valid sanction

The Supreme Court on Tuesday stayed the trial court proceedings against Sameer Kulkarni, one of the accused in the 2008 Malegaon bomb blast case, while hearing his plea that the sanction taken to prosecute him under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act was not proper.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday stayed the trial court proceedings against Sameer Kulkarni, one of the accused in the 2008 Malegaon bomb blast case, while hearing his plea that the sanction taken to prosecute him under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act was not proper. A bench of Justice AS Bopanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar stayed the trial court proceedings and posted the matter for hearing on July 23.

Kulkarni had filed a petition in the apex court to stay proceedings under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act stating that the sanction taken to prosecute him was not proper. The bench had earlier issued notice to the Maharashtra government and sought its response.

The plea filed by Kulkarni through advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain challenged the competence of the trial court to conduct the trial and also that without a valid sanction under Section 45(2) of the UAPA. The plea had challenged the June 28, 2023 order of the Bombay High Court which had upheld the April 24, 2023 order of the NIA court rejecting Kulkarni's plea regarding the competence of the Court to hold the trial without valid sanction.

"No trial can commence and the entire exercise is being done in futility and such proceeding is null and void and without jurisdiction and the petitioner is being harassed and his rights under section 21 are being infringed," the plea stated. Kulkarni, along with six others, including BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur and Lieutenant Colonel Prasad Purohit, is facing trial for the blast at Malegaon on September 29, 2008. (ANI)

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