Supreme Court stays Bombay HC verdict acquitting 12 accused in 2006 Mumbai train blasts case

The Supreme Court of India on Thursday stayed a Bombay High Court judgment that acquitted 12 men convicted in the 2006 Mumbai train bombings, after the Maharashtra government argued that the ruling could undermine ongoing cases under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA).

The court made it clear that its order would not affect the release of the 12 men, all of whom had already been freed following their acquittal.

A bench of Justices M.M. Sundresh and N. Kotiswar Singh also issued notices to all 12 acquitted individuals and sought their responses to the state’s appeal.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Maharashtra government, told the court that the state was not seeking to reverse the release of the accused but was concerned about the broader implications of the High Court’s findings. Accepting the argument, the bench said the Bombay High Court’s ruling would not carry precedential value until further orders.

The High Court, in its judgment delivered on July 21, had overturned the 2015 convictions of the 12 men by a special MCOCA court. Five of the accused had been sentenced to death and the rest to life imprisonment. The court found that the prosecution had failed to establish the charges beyond reasonable doubt, describing the investigation as flawed and marred by procedural lapses.

Additionally, the court found serious issues with the reliability of eyewitness accounts.

On July 11, 2006, seven bombs exploded in packed Mumbai local trains, bringing the city to a standstill within 11 minutes.

The coordinated terror attack left 189 dead and over 800 injured.