The Bombay High Court has granted bail to five individuals accused of plotting to bomb the Sunburn music festival in Pune in 2017.
The five individuals granted bail are Sujit Rangaswami, Amit Baddi, Ganesh Miskin, Shrikant Pangarkar, and Bharat Kurane.
A division bench of Justices Bharati Dangre and Manjusha Deshpande noted that the alleged conspiracy to bomb the festival was never carried out. The bench cited prolonged incarceration without trial, insufficient evidence to establish a conspiracy, and the presumption of innocence as reasons for the decision. The court observed that, since September, no witnesses had been examined by the prosecution, raising doubts about the timely completion of the trial.
The five accused were arrested by the Anti-Terrorism Squad in Mumbai in 2018.
The bench noted, “All the accused persons were arrested in 2018, and although the trial has commenced, only two witnesses have been examined and the third is currently in the witness box, while the prosecution has cited a list of 417 witnesses.”
The police have accused the five men of being members of Hindutva groups Sanatan Sanstha and Hindu Janjagruti Samiti. They allegedly conspired to carry out petrol and crude bomb blasts at the Sunburn festival in Pune to “send a strong message against Western music and culture.”
The accused are charged under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, the Explosive Substances Act, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, the Arms Act, and the Maharashtra Police Act. The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad’s chargesheet alleges that the accused were influenced by the book Kshatra Dharma Sadhana, published by the Sanatan Sanstha, which calls on Hindus to establish a Hindu nation.
In October last year, the High Court also granted bail to Vaibhav Raut, another individual accused in the case.
