HC rejects bail plea of ailing Sadhvi in Malegaon blast case

The Bombay High Court refused to grant bail on medical grounds today, to 2008 Malegaon bomb blast accused Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur who has been in custody for five and a half years in connection with her role as a conspirator in the crime.
A division bench dismissed an appeal filed by her against a Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) court order, refusing bail to her on medical grounds.
"Taking into consideration, the material available on record, it cannot be said that the appellant is not guilty of the offence for which she is charged. The material clearly indicates that the appellant is a conspirator and had actively helped the co-accused by providing a motorcycle for explosion of a bomb at Malegaon," a bench headed by Justice P V Hardas said.

"We are of the considered opinion that a strong prima facie case against the appellant exists, on the basis of material available on record and the same is sufficient to deny bail to her," the bench said.
The judges said that they did not find the impugned order passed by the Special MCOCA Court judge on September 25, 2012, to suffer from any legal infirmity.
Senior Counsel U A Lalit argued that the appellant suffers from serious ailments and produced before the court a medical report dated February 4, 2014, issued by the Jawaharlal Nehru Cancer Hospital & Research Centre, Bhopal.

National Investigating Agency Counsel Rohini Salian submitted that government hospitals were well equipped to provide all sorts of medical help to the appellant and that even at this juncture, the Sadhvi is being provided with the best medical facilities available in government hospitals.
"Therefore we see no reason to accede to the request of the learned senior counsel, that on the ground of ill health or for want of medical treatment, the appellant needs to be released on bail," the judges said.