2018 arms haul case: Bombay HC grants bail to 5 accused citing prima facie insufficient evidence

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court has granted bail to five persons arrested by the Maharashtra Anti Terrorism Squad (ATS) in connection with a 2018 arms haul case and for allegedly conspiring to attack the Sunburn festival in Pune, citing prima facie insufficient evidence to prove the conspiracy charge.

A division bench of Justices Bharati Dangre and Manjusha Deshpande, in the order of July 30, also took note of the long incarceration of the accused persons with bleak chances of the trial ending soon.

The ATS arrested five persons in 2018 after it seized arms, ammunition and explosives from the residence of two other accused in the Nallasopara area of Thane district. The ATS had claimed the arms and explosives were to be used to target the Sunburn festival in Pune in December 2017.

The bench perused the witness statements and other evidence submitted by the prosecution in its chargesheet and said they were "insufficient".

"We have prima facie formed an opinion that these statements are insufficient to establish the charge of conspiracy against the appellants before us," the court said.

The court noted that none of the alleged attacks were carried out.

"The Sunburn programme was, in fact, successfully completed without any disturbance, but the arrest in the present case was made in the first week of August 2018, eight months after the programme was over," the court said.

It further noted that the accused were arrested in 2018, and only two witnesses have been summoned in the trial till date. The prosecution intends to examine 417 witnesses in the case.

"The chances of timely completion of trial appear to be bleak. Speedy trial has received recognition of the fundamental right of a person facing accusations," the bench said.

The bench granted all five accused bail on a personal bond of Rs 50,000 each and directed them to appear before the ATS's Mumbai office once a month and before the trial court for each hearing.

The court was hearing five appeals filed by the accused challenging a special court order denying them bail.

The accused have been booked under various provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), Indian Penal Code (IPC), Explosives Act and Explosive Substances Act.

The five accused, Sujith Rangaswamy, Amit Baddi, Ganesh Miskin, Shrikant Pangarkar and Bharat Kurane, were arrested in 2018.

The ATS had, during the interrogation of two accused, Sharad Kalaskar and Vaibhav Raut, raided their residential premises and seized arms, ammunition and explosives from Nallasopara.

Based on the duo's statements, 10 others were arrested.

The ATS's case was that the accused persons were active members of right-wing groups, Sanatan Sanstha and Hindu Janjagruti Samiti, and were influenced by the philosophy of creation of a 'Hindu Rashtra'.

According to the prosecution, the accused had formed a gang to oppose anti-Hindu elements in the society. They conspired to target music festivals and shows, including the Sunburn festival in Pune in 2017.

It alleged that the accused had planned to disrupt the festival by throwing stones and petrol bombs, creating a ruckus using firearms and so on.