This text consists of knowledge from Justice Delayed, an ongoing mission by the writer to create a database of legal instances from greater than 650 district courts in India.
On the evening of Sept. 29, 2008, an explosion ripped via a crowded space within the predominantly Muslim metropolis of Malegaon, Maharashtra in India, killing six individuals and injuring greater than 100 others. Investigators alleged that the blast was triggered by a bomb planted in a bike registered to Pragya Chandrapalsingh Thakur, then a 38-year-old nun and Hindutva (or Hindu nationalist) activist.
Thakur was probably the most excessive profile of the seven individuals arrested and charged for his or her alleged involvement within the blast. Virtually 17 years later, the entire accused have been acquitted, with the choose reportedly saying that the prosecution couldn’t show that the bomb was fitted to the bike or that it belonged to Thakur.
Showing in court docket on Thursday, Thakur reportedly instructed the choose that the investigation had “ruined [her] life”. She was quoted by a number of retailers saying that she had been “arrested and tortured” by investigators. She additionally hailed her acquittal as a “victory of Hindutva”.
In the meantime, the advocate for the victims’ households has reportedly vowed to problem the acquittals in India’s Excessive Courtroom.
Thakur’s court docket look on Thursday was a uncommon one: she has been notably absent for many of the trial, citing medical causes together with mind swelling, impaired sight, and a physician advising mattress relaxation “as a consequence of a number of illnesses”.
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Though attending hearings associated to her case was a key situation of her bail, a Bellingcat evaluation of paperwork from the NIA particular court docket exhibits she was recorded as current at solely three of the 162 court docket appointments that targeted on remaining arguments of the case, from July 24, 2024 to Might 8, 2025.
As of publication, Thakur has not replied to a number of requests for remark over e mail, textual content messages, and social media about her absences from court docket. Considered one of her legal professionals, Advocate JP Mishra, instructed Bellingcat that he solely has the contact variety of Thakur’s private assistant, and never of Thakur herself.
Thakur has been on bail since April 2017, when organised crime expenses in opposition to her had been dropped by the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), a state police physique. A yr later, the Nationwide Investigation Company (NIA) – the primary counter-terrorism investigation company in India – initiated a brand new case in opposition to Thakur and 6 others over their alleged involvement in the identical incident.
In 2019, Thakur was elected as a Member of Parliament for the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh beneath the ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Celebration (BJP), and served 5 years within the function earlier than stepping down in 2024 on the finish of her time period.
Pragya Thakur: Homicide Suspect Turned Politician
That is the second legal case the place Thakur has been charged, after which acquitted as a consequence of a scarcity of proof.
She was beforehand accused, then acquitted in 2017, of being considered one of eight individuals concerned within the December 2007 homicide of Sunil Joshi, reportedly a shut aide of Thakur earlier than they fell out.
Joshi was a suspect within the 2007 Samjhauta Categorical prepare bombing which killed 68 individuals, principally Pakistan residents. Primarily based on native studies, the court docket acquitted Thakur and her co-accused after discovering the case was not investigated with the “required seriousness” by the NIA and state police, who it stated produced “weak and self-contradictory evidences”. Thakur was not current in court docket when the decision for this case was delivered.
When the BJP fielded her as a candidate within the 2019 normal elections, Thakur had been accused of terrorism, homicide and legal conspiracy over the 2008 Malegaon blast.
Nisar Ahmed Sayyed Bilal, whose son was one of many victims of the Malegaon bombing, filed an utility within the trial court docket to stop her from operating within the election, however this was dismissed.
Thakur received her seat by a large margin in opposition to her opponent – a two-time chief minister of the state – and served as a member of parliament for 5 years.
Whereas in workplace, Thakur continued to be a controversial determine. She was usually quoted making incendiary feedback in opposition to the nation’s minority Muslim neighborhood, together with accusing them of “love jihad” and inspiring Hindus to arm themselves in opposition to Muslims by sharpening their kitchen knives. This was although she was representing a constituency with a considerably Muslim inhabitants of greater than half one million, as of the newest 2011 census knowledge.
In considered one of her speeches delivered in parliament in December 2023, Thakur criticised the earlier authorities for permitting Muslims accused of crimes to safe bail “regardless of being criminals”, although she was out on bail herself.
She has additionally been quoted in studies claiming that cow urine can shield in opposition to Covid-19 and that the identical substance had cured her breast most cancers. Nonetheless, a surgeon who operated on her was quoted in an interview saying that she underwent a mastectomy for the latter situation. Considered one of her legal professionals, Advocate JP Mishra, additionally instructed Bellingcat that Thakur had two surgical procedures whereas in jail, and one after her launch, to combat most cancers.
The decision on Thursday marks the tip of one of many longest-running terrorism trials within the nation.
Procedural delays usually are not unusual in India’s justice system – it reportedly has a staggering backlog of fifty million pending instances – however Bellingcat’s evaluation discovered that this case took for much longer than different comparable ones beneath India’s anti-terror Illegal Actions (Prevention) Act (UAPA). Information from the NIA particular court docket, which solely offers with expenses beneath the UAPA, exhibits that 5 different trials it recorded as accomplished as of July 25 this yr had been determined in a mean of 19.6 months. The Malegaon case was heard 1,187 occasions over a interval of 84 months earlier than Thursday’s verdict was delivered.
Getting the Information
In India’s justice system, every case earlier than a court docket is assigned a novel Case Quantity Document (CNR), which is used for all paperwork associated to that case.
The CNR might change if the case is transferred between courts. For instance, the Malegaon case had a special CNR within the 10 years that it was being investigated by the ATS earlier than it was handed over to the NIA.
Looking out the eCourts web site for case quantity MHCC020159052016, the CNR assigned to the proceedings for the NIA particular court docket case, returned 1,187 distinctive court docket data from July 5, 2018 to Might 8, 2025.
We targeted on the hearings that came about after remaining arguments started on July 24, 2024, as much as Might 8, 2025, when the decision was initially scheduled to be delivered. The Might 8 listening to was postponed to July 31, and there have been no different court docket appearances recorded between then and Thursday’s verdict.
Of the 162 court docket data of the case we extracted for this era, one case from October 17, 2024 had no notes recorded within the paperwork, making it inconceivable to find out if Thakur was current or not.
For the remaining 161 paperwork, we manually checked the textual content to find out if Thakur was recorded as current. The total dataset of those paperwork, in addition to the evaluation by two unbiased coders (the writer and editor of this story), could be accessed right here.
Our evaluation confirmed that Thakur was recorded as current on solely three events throughout this era – first on January 30, 2024, greater than six months after the ultimate arguments started, at a listening to the following day, and once more on Might 8 this yr when the decision was initially scheduled to be delivered.
Medical Causes Cited for Absences
Courtroom paperwork and native studies present that Thakur’s absence from proceedings for this case dates again years. Whereas the court docket has accepted medical certificates produced by her advocates, the judges presiding over the case have additionally repeatedly famous her absences, with one choose particularly stating in 2019 that she needs to be in court docket not less than as soon as every week. In December 2020, the prosecution argued that it appeared as if she was intentionally avoiding showing in court docket.
“Plainly they’ve taken the authorized course of and court docket without any consideration,” Advocate Shahid Nadeem, a consultant for the victims, instructed Bellingcat in an e mail previous to the decision.
A timeline of Thakur’s court docket attendance throughout the remaining arguments:
Thakur has maintained that her absences from court docket had been justified by medical causes, together with circumstances she claims had been attributable to “torture” whereas in custody of the ATS. Throughout her time period as an MP, the court docket additionally granted exemptions to her court docket look based mostly on her legal professionals’ arguments that she wanted to attend parliamentary periods.
On Sept. 3, 2024, Thakur’s legal professionals filed for an exemption for her look in court docket, saying she was “affected by neurological drawback with swelling in mind and is unable to see correctly”. The court docket authorized the applying on the situation that exemptions had been filed for every day the case was heard till Thakur appeared, stating that she ought to seem on the newest by Sept. 18.
Every week after this utility, on Sept. 10, an area BJP chief from Bhopal posted a video on Instagram displaying Thakur attending a groundbreaking ceremony for a temple within the Madhya Pradesh metropolis. Bellingcat was unable to independently confirm when this groundbreaking ceremony came about, and whether or not it was throughout the interval that Thakur’s legal professionals stated she was significantly sick. Bellingcat emailed Kishan Suryavanshi, the native chief who posted the video, to ask when it was recorded, however didn’t obtain a reply as of publication.
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On Sept. 18, Thakur’s legal professionals filed one other utility saying that she had been moved from a hospital in Bhopal to at least one in Meerut, within the neighbouring Uttar Pradesh state. The applying stated her medical situation had deteriorated, that she was “unable to see correctly” and that it could take a “very long time” for her restoration. The court docket authorized this utility, with the identical situation that her legal professionals should file exemptions for every listening to that she was absent from court docket, till a modern date of Sept. 30.
When yet one more utility was filed for comparable causes on Sept. 30, Particular Choose AK Lahoti warned that Thakur ought to seem by Oct. 3, or a court docket order could be issued. Considered one of Thakur’s legal professionals started making remaining arguments for her case that day.
Regardless of this warning, the choose continued to grant exemption purposes made for Thakur all through October, as remaining arguments particular to the costs in opposition to her continued in court docket. Lastly, on Nov. 5, 2024, Lahoti rejected an utility by Thakur’s legal professionals to exempt her from court docket but once more.
This utility, in keeping with the court docket paperwork, was filed with a photocopy of a medical certificates displaying that Thakur was present process “panchkarm therapy”. This may occasionally discuss with Panchakarma, a sort of Ayurvedic or various medical therapy. Mishra, Thakur’s lawyer, instructed Bellingcat that Thakur was in an Ayurvedic hospital in Meerut on the time.
In response, Lahoti issued a bailable warrant of 10,000 Indian Rupees (US$114) for Thakur, stating that the ultimate listening to would proceed and that Thakur’s presence “is critical”. A bailable warrant is a warrant for arrest that permits the accused to be launched if bail is paid to ensure their look in court docket.
The subsequent day, a photograph of Thakur was posted to her X profile, together with her face wanting barely swollen. Within the caption, she appeared responsible the Indian Nationwide Congress for “torture” and “struggling”, together with mind swelling in addition to listening to and visible impairment. The final line of her submit, in Hindi, interprets to, “If I reside via this, I’ll undoubtedly go to court docket.”
‘No Particular Remedy’
Thakur’s trial has been a controversial one. In 2015, the previous particular public prosecutor (SPP) assigned to the case, Rohini Salian, stated the NIA had requested her to “go tender” on the case, an allegation the company denied.
Nadeem, the advocate for the victims, instructed Bellingcat: “So far as the looks of the accused throughout the trial, NIA’s prosecutor has not taken objection to the exemption utility of the accused on many of the events.”
“Victims have restricted rights in legal trials,” he stated.
Bellingcat contacted three senior officers within the NIA vertical of the Counter Terrorism and Counter Radicalization Division, which is a part of the Ministry of Dwelling Affairs of India, asking to debate how the company seen Thakur’s absence from court docket. As of publication, the officers had not replied to a number of emails.
The present SPP Avinash Rasal instructed Bellingcat that Thakur had offered medical causes for her absences throughout the remaining arguments and that her causes had been thought of by the court docket. “At no time the case was stalled as a consequence of non-appearance of the accused. Their advocates all the time remained current,” he added.
Bellingcat’s evaluation exhibits that Thakur’s advocates had been recorded as current in any respect 161 hearings after remaining arguments started.
On not less than two events in October 2024, the choose accepted the exemptions filed for her absence whereas noting that her advocates had been current and her absence was “not inflicting any hurdle within the clean trial”. The identical choose, nevertheless, additionally stated the subsequent month that her presence was obligatory for the ultimate arguments.
Rasal stated there was “no stress” on the prosecution as a consequence of Thakur’s place as a member of parliament.
“No particular therapy was given to anybody.”
Galen Reich designed the scrolling timeline for this piece.
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