Chandigarh/ Mumbai: A judge of Bombay high court has reportedly passed a strange comment while hearing bail petition of murder accused Hindutva activists that the fact of deceased belonging to a different religion (Islam) was a favourable point for the accused persons (Hindus).
As reported by the Indian Express (IE) on January 24, in her January 12 order, Justice Mridula Bhatkar observed that “the fault of the deceased was only that he belonged to another religion. I consider this factor in favour of the applicants/accused. Moreover, the applicants/accused do not have any criminal record and it appears that in the name of the religion, they were provoked and have committed the murder.”
Mohsin Shaikh was murdered in June 2014 allegedly by members of the Hindu Rashtra Sena (HRS)
Notably, the High Court judge was hearing bail pleas of persons arrested and accused in Mohsin Shaikh murder case. 21 persons reportedly belonging to Hindutva outfits are facing charges in this case, of which 14 were granted bail till January 24.
Mohsin Shaikh — a 28-year-old man in Pune was murdered in June 2014 allegedly by members of the Hindu Rashtra Sena (HRS).
Mohsin, who worked in a Pune firm, was attacked on his way home after offering prayers at a masjid on the night of June 2, 2014. His friend, Riyaz Ahmed Mubarak Shendure, was with him when they were targeted, allegedly by HRS members protesting an alleged Facebook post of some derogatory pictures of Chhatrapati Shivaji and Bal Thackeray.
Later, a case of murder was registered at the Hadapsar police station and 21 HRS members, including their leader Dhananjay Jayram Desai alias Bhai, were arrested. The state had then appointed Ujjwal Nikam as a prosecutor in the case.