Mumbai: Observing that as a case is made out by the prosecution for framing of the charge, five years after the Antilia bomb scare and murder of Mansukh Hiran, a special court on August 1 will frame charges to be faced by the 10 accused. Once charges are framed and if the accused plead not guilty, the trial will commence.On Monday, the court decided August 1 as the date for framing of charges after hearing extensive arguments from the prosecution and the defence. The maximum sentence attracted is the death penalty.On February 25, 2021, an SUV with explosives was found near Antilia, industrialist Mukesh Ambani’s residence in south Mumbai. The prosecution has claimed that Hiran, the vehicle owner, was murdered on March 4, 2021, because he knew of the conspiracy. Ten accused, including dismissed police officers Sachin Waze, Sunil Mane and Pradeep Sharma, have been named. Waze was arrested that same month. The accused have been booked under various charges, including the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and the Indian Penal Code.The NIA had submitted that Waze is mastermind of the entire conspiracy and in pursuance of the same placed a threat along with a vehicle laden with explosives near the residence of the industrialist “with the intent to terrorise wealthy prosperous individuals and also to extort money by putting into fear of that consequences, and also a post on the telegram channel of Jaish-ul-Hind was a deliberate attempt to give credibility to the terror”.It was further argued that Waze, Mane, Sharma, Santosh Shelar, Anand Jadhav, Satish Mothkuri, and Manish Soni entered into a criminal conspiracy and intentionally caused the death of Hiran “as he refused to accept the responsibility of placing the vehicle laden with gelatin sticks and was a weak link who would unearth the entire conspiracy which is a direct outcome of the terrorist act”. It was further submitted that in pursuant to the criminal conspiracy, Waze, Mane, Shelar, Jadhav, Mothkuri, Soni, and Sharma abducted Hiran to eliminate him.
