2008 Malegaon blasts: NIA refutes prosecutor’s claim in SC

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has termed as “unwarranted and baseless” the allegations levelled by its ex-special public prosecutor Rohini Salian that she was asked to “go soft” against the accused in the 2008 Malegaon blasts case.

Refuting Salian’s claims before the Supreme Court, the NIA said no accused was granted bail since June 2014 when <g data-gr-id="17">prosecutor</g> was allegedly asked to “go soft”. “It is worth mentioning that all bail orders in Malegaon blasts case have been obtained by the accused persons when the respondents were represented through Rohini Salian (SPP) that no bail has been granted by any court to any person arrested in the case since June 2014 when, as alleged by Salian, the ‘go soft’ message was passed on to her,” an affidavit submitted by NIA before the Apex Court said.

Salian, who was SPP in the case, had stirred a controversy by alleging that an NIA officer had told her to “go soft” on the accused and claimed the same officer had told her that she would be replaced.

On the issue of Salian’s removal from NIA’s panel of lawyers, the anti-terror agency denied that she was being “targeted” and said it was done as per the policy under which two other prosecutors were also proposed to be de-notified since they have completed five years.