Nineteen years after the deadly Mumbai train blasts in 2006, the Bombay High Court has acquitted all 12 people who were earlier convicted. The blasts had killed over 180 people and injured many others.
On Monday, the High Court said the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), which investigated the case, failed to prove that the accused were guilty. The court said the evidence presented was weak, the witness statements were unreliable, and the items recovered from the accused had no clear connection to the crime.
The judges also pointed out that the type of bombs used was never confirmed and the confessions taken from the accused appeared to be made under torture. They also criticized the police for not following proper procedures, including how the accused were identified and how the items were handled after recovery.
The special court had earlier given death sentences to five of the accused and life imprisonment to seven others. But the High Court refused to accept that decision and ordered their release, saying the prosecution failed to prove the case.
Now, all 12 accused will be released from jail unless they are involved in other cases. One of them, Kamal Ansari, had already died during the appeal process.
This decision is seen as a major embarrassment for the ATS and has raised serious questions about how the case was handled.
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