Tortured to take names of PM Modi, Yogi Adityanath: Pragya Thakur

Pragya Thakur

Former BJP MP Pragya Thakur on Saturday said that she was forced and tortured to take names of PM Modi, UP CM Yogi Adityanath, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat during interrogation related to the Malegaon blast case.

She, along with six others, was acquitted by Mumbai's NIA special court on July 31, Mumbai's NIA special court. The court said that the prosecution failed to establish the case beyond a reasonable doubt and ordered the Maharashtra government to award Rs 2 lakh compensation to the families of the victims & Rs 50,000 compensation to the injured.

VIDEO | Former BJP MP Pragya Thakur, who was acquitted by NIA court in Malegaon blast case says, "I was forced and tortured to take names of Yogi Adityanath, Mohan Bhagwat, PM Modi and others."#PragyaThakur #malegaonblastcase

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Thakur, after her acquittal, said that the verdict signified the victory of "Bhagawa, Sanatana aur Rashtra" while accusing the Congress of fabricating the case for political gains and defaming nationalists.

"Bhagawa, Sanatana aur Rashtra ki vijay hui hai'. I had to face a lot of difficulties, but I will keep doing everything possible for the country in future.Congress falsely made the entire case. This case was baseless. Congress always uses respectful words for terrorists. Congress party cannot become a nation-loving party," she said.

“This was a conspiracy by the Congress, and it has now been exposed. There is no need for further proof because truth always prevails, and it has prevailed this time as well. Congress targeted saints, the RSS, and the Army, all of which are fundamental pillars of India, in an attempt to destroy them," she added.

Additionally, Sameer Kulkarni, one of the acquitted accused, accused the then Congress-led Maharashtra government of appeasement politics ahead of the 2009 elections.

"We immediately expressed gratitude to the court... We fought this legal battle for the self-respect of the majority Hindu community. The then Congress government committed this heinous act of Muslim appeasement for the 2009 state elections and they were also unable to save the lives of Malegaon's innocent victim taxpayers," Sameer Kulkarni said.

A total of 7 people were accused, including former MP Sadhvi Pragya, Major (retired) Ramesh Upadhyay, Sudhakar Chaturvedi, Ajay Rahirkar, Sudhankar Dhar Dwivedi (Shankaracharya) and Sameer Kulkarni.

"All bail bonds of the accused are cancelled and sureties are discharged," the NIA special court said.

On September 29 2008, six people were killed and 95 others injured when an explosive device strapped to a motorcycle detonated near a mosque in Malegaon City's Bhikku Chowk. Initially, 11 people were accused in the case; however, the court ultimately framed charges against 7, including former MP Sadhvi Pragya