Antilia bomb scare: Court rejects ex-cop Sachin Waze's discharge plea

A special NIA court in Mumbai has refused to discharge Sachin Waze in the Antilia bomb scare and Mansukh Hiran murder case. The order clears the way for charges to be framed after the court said the record contains more than sufficient material.

In Short

• Court finds sufficient material to frame charges against Waze
• Judge criticises Waze's lengthy discharge plea lacking merit
• Waze's earlier pleas also rejected by lower and High Courts

A special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court in Mumbai has refused to discharge dismissed police officer Sachin Waze in the 2021 Antilia bomb scare and Mansukh Hiran murder case, holding that there is "more than sufficient material" on record to frame charges against him.

Special Judge Chakor S Baviskar rejected Waze's discharge application, observing that the trial court is not required to conduct a detailed examination of the prosecution's evidence at the stage of framing charges.

The court also took a sharp view of Waze's 157-page discharge application, saying it contained everything except merit.

"Present applicant No 1 Sachin has pleaded everything under the sun, which includes facts from his perception, philosophy as per his convenience, law as he picks and chooses, case laws on which reliance is misplaced, irrelevant rhymes and absurd rhetorics, maxims and mayhems and what not... With a few lines more, and I fear that, this discharge application would have defeated Britannica Encyclopedia. What is missed is just a merit," the judge remarked.

The court noted that Waze had earlier filed similar applications seeking to terminate the proceedings, including pleas questioning the court's jurisdiction, alleging defects in the investigation and challenging the sanction for prosecution. Those applications had already been rejected by the trial court as well as by the Bombay High Court and the Delhi High Court.

The judge observed that the consequences sought through Waze's earlier application and the present discharge plea were substantially the same, with both relying on parallel grounds.

In his discharge plea, Waze questioned the truthfulness, reliability and effect of the prosecution's evidence. However, the court held that it was not required to undertake a "roving inquiry into the pros and cons of the evidence" at this stage.

The judge said the test of the "truthfulness, sufficiency and acceptability" of the prosecution's material can only be undertaken during trial and not while framing charges. After examining the charge sheet and material placed on record, the court said it had "no hesitation" in concluding that "more than sufficient material exists on record to frame the charge against Waze."

According to the prosecution's case, an explosives-laden Mahindra Scorpio SUV was found parked near industrialist Mukesh Ambani's residence, Antilia, in south Mumbai on February 25, 2021. The vehicle contained 20 gelatin sticks and a threat note.

Businessman Mansukh Hiran, who had been in possession of the SUV, went missing on March 4, 2021. His body was found in a creek in neighbouring Thane on March 5, following which a murder case was registered.

The prosecution alleged that Waze conspired to terrorise wealthy individuals and extort money to meet a purported monthly collection target of Rs 100 crore allegedly set by a high-ranking political figure while also attempting to regain his "lost glory" as a "super cop." It further alleged that Waze later conspired to eliminate Hiran after the latter refused to take responsibility for the explosives-laden SUV and became a "weak link" who could expose the conspiracy.

Waze was arrested in March 2021 and remains in judicial custody. The special court has now rejected his discharge application, paving the way for charges to be framed against him in the case.

- Ends