Malegaon Blast Case: 17 Years of Wait Ends, Know the Complete Timeline in One Click

Mumbai (The Uttam Hindu News)- The court on Thursday acquitted all seven accused in the 2008 Malegaon blast case. With this, the case came to an end in which the term 'Hindu terrorism' was used, which was rejected by the special NIA court of Mumbai.

The 17-year-long trial saw many twists and turns, with three charge sheets (including a supplementary one) filed by two investigating agencies - the Maharashtra ATS and the NIA. Both agencies changed the prosecution theory during the investigation and witnesses were repeatedly added and removed. Here's a look at the key facts, developments and dates involved in the case.

29 September 2008: 6 people died in Malegaon when a bomb strapped to a motorcycle exploded. Riots also broke out after this incident.

Accused: Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur (former BJP MP), Lt. Col. Prasad Shrikant Purohit (military intelligence officer), Major (retired) Ramesh Upadhyay, Ajay Rahirkar, Sudhakar Dwivedi, Sudhakar Chaturvedi, Sameer Kulkarni.

Charges : Criminal conspiracy, murder, use of explosives, investigation started under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), Arms Act, and Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Origin of 'Hindu terror': The Maharashtra ATS (led by Hemant Karkare) claimed that the attack was carried out by right-wing Hindu extremist groups, leading to the coining of the term 'Hindu terrorism'.

October 2008: The ATS arrested Sadhvi Pragya and Purohit. Both were accused of being associated with Abhinav Bharat, which had planned 'revenge attacks' on Muslims.

November 2008: The motorcycle used in the blast was seized as evidence. Subsequently, Hemant Karkare was martyred in the 26/11 Mumbai attacks.

January 2009: The ATS filed the first chargesheet, naming 11 accused.

July 2009: The special court dropped MCOCA charges against the accused.

July 2010: The Bombay High Court reinstated MCOCA charges.

April 2011: The NIA took over the investigation of the case.

2016-2017: NIA filed supplementary chargesheet, dropped MCOCA charges but retained terrorism charges. Also accused ATS of fabricating evidence.

2017: Purohit got bail from Supreme Court. After this Sadhvi Pragya was granted bail by the High Court.

October 2018: Charges were formally framed against seven accused.

December 2018 : Trial officially began in special NIA court.

September 2023: Prosecution completed arguments after examining 323 witnesses, of which 37 turned hostile.

April 19, 2025: Final arguments completed and Mumbai's special NIA court reserved the verdict.

July 31, 2025: Special NIA court acquitted all seven accused released on bail. Also ordered Maharashtra government to pay Rs 2 lakh compensation to the deceased and Rs 50,000 to the injured.

Statement of NIA Special Judge Abhay Lohati: The prosecution proved that the Malegaon blast took place, but could not prove that the bomb was planted in the motorcycle.

Grounds for acquittal:The accused were given the benefit of the doubt. The prosecution could not prove whether the motorcycle belonged to Sadhvi Pragya or Lt Col Purohit had planted the bomb in it.

Main twist: The prosecution failed to prove that the accused held meetings in Bhopal, Faridabad and other places where plans to create a 'Hindu Rashtra' and carry out attacks were discussed.