Bombay HC directs lower court to complete trial within a year in 2011 triple blasts case

While one of the accused, Kawal Pathreja, an alleged hawala operator, passed away during the pendency of the trial, ten are in custody, including a top IM operative Yasin Bhatkal, who is serving death penalty in Tihar jail in Delhi for the Hyderabad blasts with other cases pending against him.

One of the accused, Kafeel Ahmed, had approached the high court seeking expeditious trial. His plea had said the incident dates back to 2011 and the case is pending ever since. The prosecution informed the court that the trial has been underway twice a week before the special court and so far 32 witnesses have deposed, with 160 witnesses in total to be examined.

“Since the applicant and all other accused are in custody since 2011, we deem it appropriate to direct the trial court to take up the aforesaid case…. on 3 days in a week,” the division bench of Justice Revati Mohite Dere and Justice Gauri Godse said.

“The learned judge should dispose of the case as expeditiously as possible and in any event within one year from the date of receipt of this order. It is also open for the learned judge to take up the case on day-to-day basis, if possible. The present application is kept pending to consider the application, as per the progress of the case, after six months,” the court said.