2006 Mumbai Train Blasts: Who Is Ex-HC Judge Muralidhar? Why did he say innocent in jail
2006 Mumbai Train Blasts: "There is a bias in probe. Innocent people are sent to jail, and years later, they are released...,' said senior counsel and former HC judge S Muralidhar
'Innocent In Jail In 2006 Train Blasts Case': Why 'Lincoln Lawyer' & Ex-HC Judge Muralidhar Said This
2006 Mumbai Train Blasts: In January, senior counsel and former Delhi High Court (HC) judge S Muralidhar said something which is ringing true in the wake of the acquittal of the 12 accused in the 2006 Mumbai train blasts case.
'There is a bias in the investigation. Innocent people are sent to jail, and years later, they are released for want of evidence. By then, there is no possibility of reconstructing their lives," argued Muralidhar. Representing two of the accused, Zameer Shaikh and Muzzammil Shaikh, the former judge had pointed to what he called 'serious flaws and communal bias" in the investigation.
On July 11, 2006, seven blasts within a span of 11 minutes in the first-class compartments of Western Railway (WR) local trains left 189 dead and several injured. The MCOCA court in September 2015 convicted 12 of the 13 arrested in the case. Kamal Ansari (now dead), Mohammad Faisal Ataur Rahman Shaikh, Ehtesham Qutubuddin Siddiqui, Naveed Hussain Khan and Asif Khan were sentenced to death, while Tanveer Ahmed Mohammed Ibrahim Ansari, Mohammed Majid Mohammed Shafi, Shaikh Mohammed Ali Alam Shaikh, Mohammed Sajid Margub Ansari, Muzammil Ataur Rahman Shaikh, Suhail Mehmood Shaikh and Zameer Ahmed Rehman Shaikh were sentenced to life imprisonment.
Who is justice S Muralidhar?
Justice Dr. S. Muralidhar was born on August 8, 1961. He began his academic journey in Chennai, where he completed his B.Sc. in Chemistry from Vivekananda College under the University of Madras in 1981, graduating with first-class honors. He then pursued law at the Madras Law College, also affiliated with the University of Madras, where he earned his Bachelor of Laws (B.L.) degree in 1984, securing the first rank and receiving multiple academic distinctions, including the L.C. Miller Medal and the Carmichael and Innes Prize. He went on to complete an LL.M. in Constitutional and Administrative Law from Nagpur University in 1990, again topping his class. In 2003, he was awarded a Ph.D. in law by the University of Delhi for his thesis on 'Legal Aid and the Criminal Justice System in India." Additionally, he qualified as a Company Secretary in 1985.
He demitted office as the Chief Justice of Orissa HC on August 7, 2023, after a 17-year illustrious career as a judge. Justice Muralidhar served the Delhi HC 14 years, before being transferred to the Punjab and Haryana HC through a midnight order. In December 2020, he was elevated as the Chief Justice of the Orissa HC.
In September 2022, the Supreme Court collegium recommended his transfer to Madras HC, but the Centre did not notify it.
India's Lincoln Lawyer: Blue Maruti Omni as office & key judgments
The judge was known for his blue Maruti Omni van that used to be parked at the SC's parking lot — that he used as his 'chamber'.
Some of his prominent verdicts as Delhi HC judge include:
Northeast Delhi riots in 2020: His bench in an emergency midnight hearing on February 26, 2020, directed Delhi police to ensure safe passage to GTB hospital for treatment.
CAA-linked violence: He rapped the Delhi police for failing to take action against three BJP leaders for hate speech.
Homosexuality: He was part of the bench that first decriminalised homosexuality in the Naz Foundation case in 2009.
Bhima-Koregaon case: He granted relief to Gautam Navlakha.
1986 Hashimpura massacre : He also convicted 16 members of the Uttar Pradesh Provincial Armed Constabulary for their role in the case, which witnessed the killing of 50 Muslim men by police.
1984 anti-Sikh riots: He delivered the verdict on conviction of Congress leader Sajjan Kumar for his role in the incident.
Disclosure of assets of SC judges: He allowed RTI pleas on in 2010.
Essential to imbibe Constitutional values: Justice Muralidhar
'The most moving moment as a judge was in this very court sitting where I am today when on July 2, 2009, Chief Justice A.P. Shah and I delivered our judgment in Naz Foundation. Even as we held that consensual same-sex between adults in private was not a crime, the relief that swept through the courtroom amongst those waiting to hear the verdict was palpable. Many broke down right here in front of us. At that moment, we knew that something irreversible had happened," he said in his farewell speech in Delhi HC in 2020.
'Over the years, I have realised that it is not enough for lawyers and judges to speak about constitutional values. It is essential to imbibe them."
With Agency Inputs
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July 22, 2025, 12:58 IST
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