Palghar lynching: Court to decide on bail pleas of 90 accused on January 16

THANE: The Thane special court will decide on the bail applications of 90 accused in the Palghar mob lynching case, in which two sadhus and their driver were killed, on January 16.

District judge S B Bahalkar on Wednesday heard arguments presented by special public prosecutor Satish Maneshinde and defence counsels Amrut Adhikari and Atul Patil appearing for the arrested accused in a dozen bail pleas.

Maneshinde in his submission told the court that the applicants before the court were present at the scene, but they had no active part in the crime.

Of the total 165 accused lodged in jail, 90 have sought bail and the court will decide on their pleas on January 16, defence counsel Adhikari said.

Earlier, the court granted bail to 105 accused and rejected the pleas of 36, stating that their role in the crime had been proven and hence, they did not deserve bail.

The defence counsels told the court that the applicants had no role to play in the incident and the police had arrested them on mere suspicion and based their mobile tower location.

The accused also questioned the validity of three FIRs being registered for the same incident.

On April 16, 2020, a mob lynched two sadhus - Chikne Maharaj Kalpavrukshagiri (70) and Sushilgiri Maharaj (35) - and their driver Nilesh Telgade (30) at Gadchinchale in Palghar district, 140 km north of Mumbai.

The brutal attack took place amid rumours that child- lifters were roaming in the area amid the lockdown.