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The court was informed that the state government had not yet appointed a special public prosecutor to represent it in the confirmation of death sentences for five individuals convicted in the horrifying 2006 Mumbai train blasts
A division bench consisting of Justices Nitin Sambre and Rajesh Patil of the Bombay High Court today reprimanded the Maharashtra government, criticizing its apparent lack of seriousness in handling appeals and confirmations related to bomb blast cases in Mumbai.
The court was informed that the state government had not yet appointed a special public prosecutor to represent it in the confirmation of death sentences for five individuals convicted in the 2006 Mumbai train blasts.
Senior advocate Raja Thackeray had initially been appointed as the special public prosecutor (SPP) for the case because he had previously handled the trial at the sessions court. However, he later expressed his unwillingness to continue in the role for the State government. Consequently, the state had sought adjournments in prior hearings to appoint a new SPP.
Subsequently, the state approached Thackeray again, requesting him to represent them in the cases as SPP. However, the terms of his appointment were still under consideration, and no progress had been made in this regard.
The bench therefore expressed its displeasure today as the State once again requested an adjournment to deliberate on the appointment of a Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) for the case.
“Is this the way you are treating these appeals? There is no seriousness with which the government is treating this issue. We will summon the Chief Secretary of the Home Department of the State to answer us tomorrow morning”, the bench said.
The bench then asked the additional public prosecutor (APP) to keep an officer from the law and justice department present in the court on that day.
“We do not want mid-level officers, we want someone from the government. If there is a failure on the aforesaid issue on the appointment of SPP or entrustment of the case to an APP by the day after tomorrow, we will call upon the principal secretary of the State Home and Justice department”, the bench warned.
Today, the division bench made it clear to both parties that it intends to commence hearing the confirmation petitions on a day-to-day basis starting from October 5, 2023.
“This court is inclined to commence final hearings from Oct 5 on a day to day basis. Either it will be the first half or second half of the day, but we will hear it on a day-to-day basis” the bench said.
On July 11, 2006, an initial blast occurred just after 6:20 pm in a local train travelling between Churchgate and Borivali, specifically between the Khar and Santacruz stations. Around the same time, another explosion took place in a local train between Bandra and Khar. Following these incidents, five additional explosions were reported in Jogeshwari, Mahim, Mira Road-Bhayandar, Matunga-Mahim, and Borivali.
On July 11, 2006, a sequence of explosions occurred in seven coaches of suburban trains, resulting in the tragic death of 189 commuters and causing injuries to 824 individuals. Following a trial lasting over eight years, a special court operating under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crimes Act (MCOCA) pronounced the death penalty for five convicts (Ehtesham Sidduiqui, Asif Khan, Faisal Shaikh, Naveed Khan, and Kamal Ansari) and life imprisonment for seven others in October 2015.
The Maharashtra Government had filed an appeal before the high court seeking confirmation of the death sentence. Simultaneously, the convicts also filed an appeal challenging their conviction by the special court.
Case title: Zahmeer Ahmed Latifur Rehman Shaikh & Ors vs State of Maharashtra
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