A day after Union Home Minister Amit Shah declared in Parliament that “no Hindu can ever be a terrorist,” a special NIA court in Mumbai acquitted all seven accused in the 2008 Malegaon bomb blast case, including BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur. The court ruled that there was no evidence against the accused, sparking a heated political reaction across the country.
The BJP and its allies hailed the verdict as a complete rejection of what they call the “Hindu terror” narrative, while opposition leaders expressed concern over the quality of the investigation and questioned whether justice had been delivered to the victims.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the verdict proved the Home Minister right. “Hindus and terrorism are two completely opposite ideas,” he said. “The concept of ‘Hindu terror’ was only created to please a particular community. Today’s court ruling has destroyed that false narrative.”
BJP MP Ravi Kishan also welcomed the verdict but pointed to the suffering of the accused. “My sister Sadhvi Pragya’s body is paralysed. Seventeen years of their lives were lost. Who will return that time? Congress must answer for coining terms like ‘Bhagwa terrorism’,” he said.
Echoing similar views, BJP MP Nishikant Dubey claimed that all terrorists belong to “one religion” and accused the Congress of using “Saffron Terrorism” as a political weapon. “Instead of going after actual terrorists from across the border, innocent Indians were framed,” he said.
Union Minister Ramdas Athawale took a more cautious stance. “The court said there was no evidence, so it acquitted them. Terrorists have no religion,” he said.
Senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad alleged that the case was part of a wider political conspiracy by Congress. “Pragya Thakur was tortured. Col Purohit, who fought against terrorism, was wrongly accused. This was vote-bank politics at its worst,” he said.
Shiv Sena MP Shrikant Shinde said the case was built on false charges. “Congress tried to create a narrative of ‘saffron terrorism’ for political gains. Now, the court has proven those charges false. Congress should apologise,” he said.
BJP IT Cell head Amit Malviya was more aggressive in his reaction, accusing Congress leaders like Sonia Gandhi and P. Chidambaram of running a campaign to defame Hindus. “The ‘Saffron Terror’ myth is dead. They owe Hindus an apology for insulting Sanatan Dharma,” he said.
But opposition leaders raised serious concerns. AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi questioned the investigation and called it deliberately weak. “Six Muslims were killed in the blast, and nearly 100 were injured. They were targeted for their faith. Will the Modi government appeal the verdict like it did in the Mumbai train blast case?” he asked.
Owaisi also reminded that Pragya Thakur was backed by BJP in 2019 and became an MP. “This is the same person who claimed she cursed Hemant Karkare, the officer who had investigated her. Is this the tough-on-terror government we were promised?” he said.
Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav said he had not read the full verdict but hoped the guilty would be punished. “I just hope this verdict is not being used to distract from other important issues like trade tariffs,” he added.
Congress leader Kamal Nath said the decision should be appealed. “BJP can say what it wants, but the court decision is not final. It can be challenged,” he said.
NCP (Sharad Pawar faction) leader Majeed Memon questioned the outcome: “If the accused were innocent, then who carried out the attack? The victims are still waiting for justice after 17 years.”
Congress MP Vivek Tankha said the verdict was shocking. “If the blast happened, someone must be responsible. Lack of proof shows serious flaws in the investigation,” he said.
Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Arvind Sawant expressed disappointment in the police. “If these people didn’t do it, then who did? The police must answer. It shows failure in our investigation system,” he said.
The 2008 Malegaon blast killed six people and injured over a hundred, most of them Muslim residents. With this verdict, questions remain—not only about who was responsible for the attack but also about the credibility and accountability of the justice system.
