Ex-cop alleges he was ordered to arrest RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat to frame 'Bhagwa Terror' narrative in Malegaon blast case

A retired police officer has alleged that he was instructed to arrest Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat to build a narrative around "Bhagwa terror" in the 2008 Malegaon blast case, The Times of India has reported.

The claim comes days after a special NIA court acquitted all seven accused, including BJP MP Pragya Thakur and Lieutenant Colonel Prasad Purohit, citing lack of credible evidence.

In a statement quoted by TOI, retired inspector Mehiboob Mujawar, who was part of the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) that initially probed the blast, said the recent acquittal had exposed the “fake things” done during the investigation.


“The verdict exposed the fake investigation done by a fake officer,” Mujawar said, directly naming a senior ATS official.

He further alleged that he received confidential orders to act against several individuals, including Ram Kalsangra, Sandip Dange, Dilip Patidar, and RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat.

“I can not say what investigation the ATS did then and why... But I was given some confidential orders regarding personalities like Ram Kalsangra, Sandip Dange, Dilip Patidar and RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat. All these orders were not such that one could follow them,” TOI quoted Mujawar as saying.

He claimed he chose not to comply with the orders because he found them “horrific” and “knew the reality.”

“It was beyond my capacity to apprehend a towering personality like Mohan Bhagwat. As I did not follow the orders, a false case was registered against me and it destroyed my career of 40 years,” he added.

Mujawar said he has documentary proof to support his claims and insisted that the saffron terror theory was fabricated. “There was no saffron terrorism. Everything was fake,” he said.

The Malegaon blast on September 29, 2008, killed six people and injured several others. The explosion took place near a mosque during Ramzan and on the eve of Navratri.

The Maharashtra ATS, then led by the late Hemant Karkare, had arrested Pragya Thakur and Prasad Purohit, alleging that the motorcycle used in the blast belonged to Thakur, and that Purohit had sourced RDX from Jammu and Kashmir.

(With inputs from TOI)