NEW DELHI: India’s National Investigation Agency (NIA) will not challenge the conditional bail granted to Naba Kumar Sarkar alias Swami Aseemanand by the Punjab and Haryana high court last year in the Samjhauta blasts case, Times of India said on Tuesday.

It quoted the home ministry as informing the Lok Sabha that the NIA, upon examining the feasibility of filing a special leave petition, found no grounds to challenge the order in the Supreme Court.

“The NIA’s decision is bound to be questioned not only at home, with the opposition likely to charge the government with going soft on terror cases involving rightwing outfits, but also across the border in Pakistan,” the paper said.

Newspaper says issue may be raised by Pakistan at proposed meeting of security advisers

Of the 68 killed in the February 2007 explosions, 42 were Pakistani citizens. The Times recalled that only recently, special public prosecutor in 2008 Malegaon blasts case Rohini Salian had alleged that she was eased out of her job following her claims that NIA was pressuring her to go soft on the Samjhauta accused, including Sadhvi Pragya and Col Srikant Purohit. The charge was refuted by NIA.

Meanwhile, Islamabad too has been pressing India to ensure proper and speedy trial in the case.

With the NIA now letting Aseemanand’s bail go unchallenged, Pakistan is likely to bring up the issue at the NSA-level talks proposed later this month, the paper said.

Published in Dawn, August 12th, 2015

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