The Bombay High Court on Thursday cancelled the bail granted to former Mumbai Police officer Sachin Waze in the 2021 Antilia bomb scare and Mansukh Hiren murder case. [National Investigation Agency v. State of Maharashtra & Anr.]

A division bench of Justices GS Kulkarni and Neela Gokhale pronounced the verdict on an appeal filed by the NIA challenging the bail granted by a special court on September 29. 

A detailed order is awaited.

The special court had questioned the applicability of terrorism charges under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) against Waze afyer noting lack of witness statements from the Ambani family.

In appeal before the High Court, Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh argued on behalf of NIA that the special judge passed an erroneous order. He pointed out that statements from Antilia's security personnel had indeed been recorded.

He argued that Waze parked the gelatin-laden SUV outside Mukesh Ambani’s residence for extortion and to stage-manage a terror plot, hoping to solve it and project himself as a supercop. When vehicle owner Mansukh Hiren refused to take the fall, he was allegedly eliminated as a weak link.

Senior Advocate VM Thorat representing Waze, countered that even if the NIA's narrative is accepted, staging a scare merely to regain his clout does not constitute terrorism under Section 15 of the UAPA. 

He argued that intimidating a single family using gelatin sticks without a detonator does not strike terror in the general public, adding that eliminating Hiren amounted to destruction of evidence rather than a terror act. 

Thorat also pressed for bail citing Waze's five-year incarceration and parity with co-accused.

After considering the arguments, the Court today cancelled the bail.

The ASG along with advocates Chintan Shah, Amogh Singh and Adarsh Vyas appeared for NIA.

Throat and advocates Sajal Yadav, Shalabh Saxena, Aarti Kalekar, Harsh Ghangurde, Raj Raut, Aayushya Geruja, Nihal Rebello, Rasheed Lakhwa and Disha Hatkar represented Waze.