MUMBAI, 14 October 2007 — The special Maharashtra Control of Organized Crime Act (MCOCA) court late Friday turned down the plea filed jointly by the 13 accused in the suburban train blasts of July 11, 2006, to allow them to meet their kin on Eid Al-Fitr.
MCOCA Judge Mridula Bhatkar rejected the plea and declined to grant the accused, who are currently in the high security Arthur Road jail, permission to celebrate Eid with their kin.
The court rejected the plea following objections from the special public prosecutor Raja Thakre, who drew the court’s attention to the jail’s rules and guidelines, whereby under trial prisoners are not allowed any meetings with friends or relatives on public holidays and Sundays. Thakre further argued that keeping in mind the religious importance of Eid and the sentiments of the jail inmates, the prison authorities would provide unlimited sweet dishes to the accused and would also arrange for the services of a Muslim cleric to conduct Eid prayers for them.
The prosecutor also said that if the plea of the accused is accepted and permission granted, then other inmates might seek similar exemptions on other religious festivals.
The accused were disappointed. “The decline of permission is discriminatory and is just another bias toward the Muslim community. We have been treated shabbily and denied justice merely because we are Muslims,” said one of the accused.
