Court Clears Thane Trio in Explosives Case Due to Lack of Evidence

A Maharashtra court acquitted three men accused of planning to harm using explosives in Thane, citing lack of eyewitnesses and inadequate linkage by the prosecution. The alleged conspiracy involved explosives hidden in an SUV. The court found insufficient proof and granted the trio benefit of the doubt.

In a notable legal decision, a court in Maharashtra's Thane has acquitted three men who faced charges of conspiring to cause harm with explosives hidden in a vehicle. The verdict came on January 29 from Additional Sessions Judge A S Bhagwat, who highlighted the absence of eyewitnesses and asserted the prosecution's inability to link the accused definitively with the seized material.

The case traces back to August 6, 2017, involving a police raid at Gousiya Compound in Thane's Mumbra locality. Authorities discovered explosives inside an out-of-use SUV, prompting charges against Mahinsa Rajesab Ganur, Shahalam Mehmud Sheikh, and Arif Nawabali Khan. The prosecution claimed the trio intended to damage life and property, specifically targeting landowner Ismail Mohammed Sheikh.

Charged under several sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Explosive Substances Act, the men spent over two years in custody before securing bail in 2019. The court decision emphasized the prosecution's failure to prove the charges beyond a reasonable doubt, granting acquittal and emphasizing the benefit of doubt due to lack of solid evidence.

(With inputs from agencies.)