Antilia bomb scare: NIA court grants bail to former Mumbai cop Sachin Waze

MUMBAI: A special NIA court on Tuesday granted bail to former policeman Sachin Waze in the 2021 Antilia bomb scare and Mansukh Hiran murder case, observing that the prosecution had failed to establish a prima facie case of terrorism under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), news agency PTI reported.

Special sessions judge Chakor S Baviskar said there was nothing on record to suggest that the Ambani family had been “terrorised” in any manner.

On February 25, 2021, an explosives-laden SUV was found near industrialist Mukesh Ambani’s residence, Antilia, in south Mumbai. Businessman Mansukh Hiran, who was in possession of the SUV, was found dead in a creek in neighbouring Thane on March 5, 2021.

The court questioned the NIA’s application of the stringent UAPA, noting that the agency had not recorded statements from any member of the Ambani family to establish that they were terrorised.

“There is absolutely nothing on record even to infer by any stretch of imagination that the Ambanis or anyone of them is/was, are/were ever terrorised in any manner,” the court said.

It also observed that the Ambanis’ day-to-day business did not appear to have been disturbed “even for a minute” after the incident.

“Though according to the prosecution, Sachin Waze wanted to strike terror or the act of the accused was likely to strike terror in the minds of Ambanis...,

there is nothing on record to that effect,” it observed.

The court further noted that the gelatin sticks found in the SUV lacked detonators and were therefore incapable of causing an explosion. It said this fell short of the “means” required to constitute a “terrorist act” under Section 15 of the UAPA.

On Hiran’s death, the court said it was a homicidal death but not the direct outcome of a terrorist act. It held that the offence remained an independent murder case under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), which did not attract the stringent bail restrictions under the UAPA.

The court allowed Waze’s bail application and directed his release on a personal bond of Rs 1 lakh with a surety.

The prosecution has accused Waze and others of forming a “terrorist gang” and entering into a criminal conspiracy between February and March 2021, PTI reported.