Col Purohit promoted after acquittal

Justice has been restored to Colonel Prasad Shrikant Purohit, a serving Military Intelligence (MI) officer, 17 years after he was implicated in one of India’s most controversial terror cases. Purohit has been promoted to Brigadier’s rank. The order to promote Purohit has come following an order by the Armed Forces Tribunal that put scheduled retirement on March 31,2026 on hold and directed the Ministry of Defence to respond to his plea for promotions and service benefits that were allegedly stalled due to the now-acquitted 2008 Malegaon blast case.

This development has come months after a special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court acquitted Col Purohit and six others in July 2025 and the Army promoted him to the rank of Colonel in September 2025.Let’s examine the 2008 Malegaon Blasts and Lt Col Purohit, a serving officer’s Arrest. On September 29, 2008, a bomb exploded near a mosque in Malegaon, Maharashtra, killing six civilians and injuring over 100. The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) quickly pointed fingers at a purported right-wing Hindu network called ‘Abhinav Bharat’.

Lt Col Purohit was arrested in November 2008. He was the first serving Indian Army officer to face terror charges. Prosecutors alleged he had supplied military-grade RDX, played a key role in the plot alongside Pragya Singh Thakur whose motorcycle was allegedly used in the blast, retired Major Ramesh Upadhyay and others.

Purohit, however, maintained that he was acting in his official capacity as a Military Intelligence (MI) officer and had infiltrated radical groups to gather intelligence and had duly reported his activities to superiors.

The Indian Army instituted a Court of Inquiry in April 2009 against Purohit and a few other personnel. The inquiry, conducted under military law, examined whether his actions amounted to any offence warranting court-martial. According to internal Army assessments and letters later placed on record, including communications from the Director General of Military Intelligence and the Integrated Headquarters of the Ministry of Defence, Purohit’s involvement was found to be consistent with his duties. Multiple official letters (dated 2018, 2019, and 2023) affirmed that he had operated a source network and acted as expected.

The Army never dismissed him or initiated disciplinary proceedings for anti-national activity. This internal clearance allowed him to remain a serving officer even as the civilian trial dragged on a rare distinction in such high-profile cases. Purohit later described himself as having been caught in a ‘political crossfire’.

He spent nearly nine years in judicial custody before the Supreme Court granted him bail in August 2017, citing material contradictions in the charge sheet.

“The case was transferred to the NIA in 2011. After years of trial involving hundreds of witnesses and voluminous evidence, Special Judge AK Lahoti delivered a detailed verdict on July 31, 2025, acquitting all seven accused, including Purohit and former BJP MP Pragya Thakur. The court held that the prosecution had failed to prove the charges beyond reasonable doubt. The sanction under the Unlawful Activities

(Prevention) Act (UAPA) was defective. The motorcycle link to Thakur could not be established.

“Upon comprehensive evaluation, the prosecution has failed to bring any cogent evidence. The evidence is riddled with inconsistencies; the Court has to extend the benefit of doubt to all accused.” The judge added a broader note: “Terrorism has no religion; the court cannot convict on mere perception; there has to be cogent evidence. Mere suspicion cannot take the place of real proof.”

Addressing Career Losses Despite the acquittal and promotion, Purohit petitioned the Armed Forces Tribunal that the 17-year saga had robbed him of normal career progression. In the natural course, he would have reached Brigadier rank and become eligible for Major General. He submitted seven unblemished Annual Confidential Reports post-2018, highlighting his competence, integrity and loyalty.

The tribunal agreed prima facie that the “illegal, fabricated” implication had caused the deprivation and stayed his retirement to allow fair consideration of his statutory complaint. The order marks another milestone in the military’s consistent support for one of its own officers.

For Colonel Purohit, the journey from arrest and incarceration to being promoted as Brigadier represents the triumph of due process.

“It is God’s grace and entirely his blessings that I will be serving my motherland again. It is also due to my organisation which has given me the opportunity to serve again. I want to do more than 100 percent to prove that by giving me this opportunity, I will prove them right”, Purohit said when reached for his comments.