In a string of well coordinated remarks, BJP officials attacked the Congress and its supporters, alleging that the 17 year old lawsuit was motivated by a political grudge to disparage Hindu nationalists and saints.
A special NIA court in Mumbai cleared all seven defendants on Thursday, including BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur and Lt Col Prasad Purohit, seventeen years after a bomb tied to a motorcycle detonated in Malegaon, killing six and wounding over 100.
Citing a lack of "cogent and reliable" evidence, the court ruled that the prosecution had not proven its case beyond a reasonable doubt.
The Maharashtra government was also ordered by the court to give Rs 50,000 to the injured and Rs 2 lakh to the families of the deceased.
Top BJP leaders responded to the ruling by accusing the UPA government, led by the Congress, of creating the "Hindu terror" narrative in order to attack political rivals. Devendra Fadnavis, the chief minister of Maharashtra, claimed that the police were under duress during the UPA administration and called on the Congress to issue an apology.
"The fake Hindu terror narrative set by the UPA for minority appeasement was exposed by the court order," he stated.
"Congress should apologise to the acquitted accused and the entire Hindu society."
Himanta Biswa Sarma, the chief minister of Assam, agreed. He declared, "The verdict demonstrates that Hindu terror does not exist." "No Hindu can be a terrorist by philosophy."
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said the ruling was a plot to discredit Hindutva and referred to it as a "slap on the face of those who called it saffron terror." He claimed that innocent people had been imprisoned for 17 years.
The case was described as "a Congress conspiracy to spread the Hindu terror theory" by senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad. "Colonel Purohit was falsely accused of fighting terrorists in Kashmir. Sadhvi Pragya was tortured to the point where she was unable to walk. At a press conference, he declared, "This was all for vote bank politics."
The ruling was referred to as a "slap on the Congress's misdeeds" by former Jharkhand chief minister Raghubar Das, who wrote on X: "The Congress and its allies must answer for defaming Hindus and causing immense harassment to innocent people."
Union Home Minister Amit Shah's recent Rajya Sabha remark that "a Hindu cannot be a terrorist" was cited by BJP MP Nishikant Dubey. There is a single religion shared by all terrorists in our nation. 'Saffron Terrorism' was used by Congress to contaminate the conversation. Since the focus was on blaming Indians rather than Pakistani terrorists, it is now evident that the true offenders were never apprehended.
Sudhanshu Trivedi, the national spokesperson for the BJP, stated that the phrase "Hindu terror" was created for political reasons. Rahul Gandhi and the Congress establishment must provide an explanation for defaming a whole religion.
The BJP spokeswoman, Shehzad Poonawalla, charged that the Congress was waging a deceptive campaign. This decision is a political and moral win over those who exploited Malegaon to demonize nationalists; it goes beyond a simple legal decision. He wrote on X, "Congress should issue an unconditional apology."
Recalling the alleged torture that BJP MP Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur suffered while incarcerated, former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Uma Bharti broke down. "I learned about her mistreatment from a police officer while she was in Nashik jail. When no one else did, I met her. I sobbed. "No woman should ever have to go through what she did," Bharti told ANI.
Bharti accused the Left and Samajwadi Party leaders, along with Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi, Digvijay Singh, and P Chidambaram, of creating and spreading the term "Bhagwa terror." "What penalty do they deserve for promoting this narrative?" She insisted that "extraordinary action be taken against them."
An outpouring of sympathy for the acquitted was also seen on social media, where BJP followers trended pro BJP emotions using hashtags like Saffron Terror Lies and Malegaon Verdict.
Owaisi finds the ruling "disappointing" and questions the probe.
Asaduddin Owaisi, the head of AIMIM, criticized the acquittal, claiming that the inquiry was purposefully undermined. Nearly 100 Namazis were hurt, and six were murdered. In a post on X, he claimed that they were singled out because of their faith. Additionally, he inquired as to whether the state would file an appeal of the decision, as it did in the case of the 2006 Mumbai train explosions.
Owaisi questioned the purported order to "go soft" on the case given to former prosecutor Rohini Salian and accused the Modi government of appointing a "terror accused" a member of parliament. He questioned, "Will NIA/ATS officers be held accountable for their flawed investigation?"
Congress claims that terror has no religion and defends its record.
In response, Digvijay Singh, a senior Congress leader, stated that no faith should be associated with terrorism. "A Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, or Christian cannot be a terrorist," he stated. Singh said the BJP was incorrectly pointing the finger at the Congress, denying that the term "Hindu terror" was a creation of the party. Amrinder Singh Raja Warring, a Congress MP, retaliated as well, stating, "When did we ever let terrorists go? For the sake of the nation's integrity and togetherness, the Congress gave their life.
The accused comes forward and claims political conspiracy
One of the defendants, Shyam Sahu, who was released in 2017, asserted that the case was a part of a Congress plot to defame Hindus. My brother passed away from a heart attack during a hearing while I was incarcerated. Justice had finally been done, he added, adding that his family will never be able to make up for that loss.
The victims' attorney intends to contest the acquittal.
The attorney for the relatives of the victims declared that he would appeal the acquittal in the highest court. Over 100 individuals were hurt, and six people lost their lives. "Who is guilty if these people aren't?" he inquired.
The court's ruling
The prosecution showed that a blast happened, but not that the defendants were responsible, according to Judge AK Lahoti, who handed down the decision. The judge cleared the accused of charges under the UAPA, IPC, and Arms Act, saying, "Conviction cannot be based on moral grounds, but terrorism has no religion."
