Indian court clears ex-MP Thakur in 2008 mosque bombing case
The blast in Malegaon, Maharashtra, injured over 100 when explosives strapped to a motorcycle detonated.
Judge AK Lahoti dismissed terrorism and conspiracy charges against the accused, stating the prosecution failed to provide conclusive evidence.
'Judgements cannot be based on morals and public perception,' Lahoti noted, as reported by Live Law.
Defence counsel Ranjit Nair highlighted the lack of proof linking Thakur to the attack, despite claims her motorcycle transported the explosives.
The verdict drew criticism from opposition leaders, including MP Asaduddin Owaisi, who called it 'disappointing' and blamed a flawed investigation.
'Those killed were targeted for their religion,' Owaisi posted on X, referencing the Hindu-Muslim tensions underlying the case.
Thakur, a controversial figure, spent nine years in jail before securing bail in 2017.
She later won a parliamentary seat from Bhopal despite past remarks praising Mahatma Gandhi's assassin and advocating cow-urine-based remedies.
India's election laws permit candidates without criminal convictions to contest polls.
The National Investigation Agency had alleged the attack aimed to stoke communal strife.
The ruling ends a 17-year legal battle but leaves lingering questions about justice for victims. – AFP
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
4 minutes ago
- The Sun
Trump hints at Putin meeting amid Ukraine crisis talks
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump indicated he may meet Russian leader Vladimir Putin 'very soon' following discussions between his envoy and Moscow officials. The announcement came after Trump described talks between US special representative Steve Witkoff and Russian leadership as highly productive. Trump revealed the possible summit during a phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, which reportedly included NATO chief Mark Rutte and leaders from Britain, Germany, and Finland. 'There's a good chance that there will be a meeting very soon,' Trump told reporters at the White House. No location was specified for the potential Putin meeting, though US media reports suggest it could happen as early as next week. The New York Times and CNN cited sources claiming Trump seeks a three-way discussion involving Putin and Zelensky. The diplomatic push follows Witkoff's Moscow visit, where Kremlin officials labelled the talks 'productive.' Trump faces a Friday deadline to impose additional sanctions if Russia fails to show progress toward peace in Ukraine. 'Great progress was made!' Trump posted on Truth Social, noting he briefed European allies afterward. Despite optimism, a senior US official confirmed secondary sanctions would still take effect in two days unless Russia alters course. Trump previously vowed to resolve the conflict swiftly upon taking office but has set Friday as a new deadline for Moscow to act. Russia continues intensifying attacks on Ukraine, reaching record levels of drone and missile strikes while advancing on the battlefield. Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov called the Witkoff meeting 'useful and constructive,' though details of exchanged positions remain undisclosed. Zelensky acknowledged the call with Trump and European leaders without naming participants. Meanwhile, Trump expressed frustration over Putin's ongoing offensive, warning of tougher sanctions targeting Russia's trade partners, including China. The US recently increased tariffs on Indian goods due to New Delhi's Russian oil purchases, a move risking global economic disruption. Trump stated he would decide on sanctions after assessing Moscow's response. Russia condemned threatened tariffs as 'illegitimate' without directly naming Trump. The war has devastated Ukraine, displacing millions and killing tens of thousands since 2022. Moscow insists Ukraine surrender territory and abandon Western alliances for peace, while Kyiv demands an immediate ceasefire. Zelensky recently urged allies to pursue 'regime change' in Russia. Tensions escalated further as Trump deployed nuclear submarines following a spat with ex-Russian president Dmitry Medvedev. Russia responded by lifting restrictions on intermediate-range missiles, citing alleged US provocations. Ukrainian officials reported fresh casualties after Russian shelling hit a holiday camp in Zaporizhzhia, killing at least two and injuring twelve. - AFP
The Star
15 minutes ago
- The Star
India braces as Trump issues 24-hour tariff threat
THE nation is racing to contain the economic fallout from President Donald Trump's threatened tariffs, which has left officials in New Delhi feeling shocked, jilted and unsure of how to respond. Trump's harsh language – calling India's economy 'dead', its tariff barriers 'obnoxious' and its people indifferent to the plight of Ukrainians – has been akin to a verbal slap in the face, according to an official in New Delhi, who asked not to be identified as the discussions are private. Officials have no template to deal with these kinds of public assaults, the person said, adding that the latest turn of events has put a strain on India's relationship with the US. Trump on Tuesday said he would increase the 25% tariff on Indian exports to the US 'substantially over the next 24 hours', citing the Asian nation's high barriers to trade and its purchases of Russian oil. India was 'fueling the war machine, and if they're going to do that, I'm not going to be happy,' Trump told CNBC. India's government is now bracing for higher tariffs and seeking to limit the possible economic damage. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been urging Indians to buy more local goods to offset any slump in global demand, while the Ministry of Commerce and Industry is discussing ways to help exporters who would be hardest hit, such as in the gems and jewellery and textile sectors. Officials say they will continue to seek back-channel talks to help ease the tensions. India has been a target of Trump for weeks now because of its economic ties with Russia. The US president has given Vladimir Putin until Aug 8 to reach a truce with Ukraine and wants to ramp up the pressure by targeting energy purchases from countries like India and China that are helping to keep Russia's economy afloat. Modi's government is so far holding its ground, saying it's being unreasonably targeted by the US for its ties to Russia – its biggest supplier of oil and military equipment. Officials have signalled they won't instruct refiners to halt Russian crude purchases. For months, Indian trade officials had been negotiating with the Trump administration on a deal that both sides said was close to being finalised, with a tariff rate possibly below 20%. The US president's tone appeared to change last month when he threatened India with higher duties alongside others in the BRICS bloc of nations for what he said was the group's anti-US stance. He then followed up several days later with warnings about financial penalties on countries like India for buying oil from Russia. — Bloomberg
The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
Oil slides as US-Russia talks stir sanction uncertainty
Brent crude futures fell 75 cents, or 1.1%, to settle at US$66.89 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude dropped 81 cents, or 1.2%, to settle at US$64.35. NEW YORK: Oil prices slid about 1% to an eight-week low on Wednesday after US President Donald Trump's remarks about progress in talks with Moscow created uncertainty on whether the US would impose new sanctions on Russia. Brent crude futures fell 75 cents, or 1.1%, to settle at US$66.89 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude dropped 81 cents, or 1.2%, to settle at US$64.35. Those moves marked a fifth consecutive day of losses for both crude benchmarks, with Brent closing at its lowest since June 10 and WTI closing at its lowest since June 5. Trump said on Wednesday that his special envoy Steve Witkoff made "great progress" in his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, as Washington continued its preparations to impose secondary sanctions on Friday. Trump has threatened additional sanctions on Moscow if no moves are made to end the war in Ukraine. "Everyone agrees this war must come to a close, and we will work towards that in the days and weeks to come," Trump said, without providing further details. Russia is the world's second-biggest producer of crude after the US, so any potential deal that would reduce sanctions would make it easier for Russia to export more oil. Earlier in the day, oil prices rose after Trump issued an executive order imposing an additional 25% tariff on goods from India, saying it directly or indirectly imported Russian oil. The new import tax will go into effect 21 days after August 7. India, along with China, is a major buyer of Russian oil. "For the time being, the 21-day start to the new Indian tariffs, while Russia tries to put together some kind of cease fire agreement ahead of President Trump's August 8 deadline, still leaves too much uncertainty around the situation," Bob Yawger, director of energy futures at Mizuho, said in a note. In addition to the tariff and sanction uncertainty, analysts said a planned Opec+ supply increase has weighed on the market in recent days. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, meanwhile, will visit China for the first time in over seven years, a government source said on Wednesday, in a further sign of a diplomatic thaw with Beijing as tensions with the US rise. In other news, Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter, on Wednesday hiked its September crude oil prices for Asian buyers, the second monthly rise in a row, on tight supply and robust demand. Oil markets found support earlier in the day from a bigger-than-expected decline in US crude inventories last week. The US Energy Information Administration said energy firms pulled 3 million barrels of crude from inventories during the week ended August 1. That was much bigger than the 0.6-million-barrel draw analysts forecast in a Reuters poll, but was smaller than the decline of 4.2 million barrels that market sources said the American Petroleum Institute trade group cited in its figures on Tuesday. — Reuters
