Lt. Col. Prasad Purohit, the prime accused in the 2008 Malegaon blast case, told the Bombay High Court on Tuesday that he “mingled” with other accused Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur and Dayanand Pandey as part of a “covert military intelligence operation.”
Arguing for bail, counsel for Purohit Shrikant Shivade said: “He had mingled with the other accused and attended meetings with them so as to get intelligence information. Purohit had informed his superiors in the Army about the meetings and discussions.”
After his arrest, Purohit requested the Chief of the Army Staff to permit him to disclose the army operations to the investigating agencies, but he was not allowed to do so, he said.
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“Earlier, Purohit had infiltrated the banned Students Islamic Movement of India and pretended to be one of its members so as to earn their trust and gather inside information. He has received several meritorious awards from Army for his work,” Mr. Shivade said.