Thane, June 29: The district court in Thane on Tuesday granted bail to 14 accused arrested in connection with the lynching of two sadhus by a mob in Palghar district of Maharashtra in April 2020.

Additional sessions court (special designated court) judge RS Gupta rejected the bail applications of 18 other accused, counsel Amrut Adhikari said. The court posted the next date of hearing on July 30 when charges are expected to be framed. A total of 201 persons were arrested in the case, of which 75 are main accused. Palghar Mob Lynching Case: Maharashtra CID Files 2 Chargesheets at Dahanu Taluka's Magistrate Court.

Special public prosecutor Satish Maneshinde is representing the prosecution, while advocate P N Ojha the families of the sadhus. On April 16, 2020, a mob lynched Chikne Maharaj Kalpavrukshagiri (70) and Sushilgiri Maharaj (35) - and their driver Nilesh Telgade (30) at Gadchinchale in Palghar district, 140 km north of Mumbai.

The brutal attack took place amid rumours that child- lifters were roaming in the area during the lockdown. Chargesheets were filed earlier in the court at Thane.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)