Until the Bombay High Court pronounces judgment on the NIA’s appeal against Sachin Waze bail, the stay on his release stays in place.
Mumbai: Closing the National Investigation Agency’s appeal against the bail granted to dismissed Mumbai Police officer Sachin Waze in the Antilia bomb scare case, the Bombay High Court on Friday reserved its verdict, and clarified that its earlier interim order staying the bail will remain in force till the judgment is pronounced [National Investigation Agency v. Sachin Waze].
The matter was heard by a Division Bench of Justice Girish Kulkarni and Justice Dr. Neela Gokhale, which closed it for orders. No date has been announced for pronouncement.
The stay that stays
The Bench made it plain, as it reserved the appeal, that the interim order suspending Waze’s bail would not lapse while the verdict is awaited. The special court’s bail order therefore remains suspended for the whole period of reservation.
From arrest to appeal
Waze was arrested on 13 March 2021 and is an accused in the 2021 Antilia bomb scare case as well as in the case relating to the murder of Mansukh Hiran. A special NIA court granted him bail on 29 September 2026.
The NIA appealed, calling that order erroneous and illegal. Its argument is that the special court overlooked key evidence and made improper remarks about the investigation. On 30 September 2026, a Bench of Justice Kulkarni and Justice Gokhale stayed the bail order and directed that the stay be communicated to the prison, so that Waze stayed in custody. The appeal was then heard in October, and at one hearing the Bench asked, orally, about the ownership of the cars Waze allegedly travelled in. Those were oral remarks, not findings.
What the reserved verdict will decide
Whether Waze goes free is now left to the Division Bench, which will rule on the NIA’s appeal; until then the interim stay keeps him in custody. The allegations against him are untested, the High Court has expressed no view on the merits, and the presumption of innocence applies. The detailed judgment will disclose the grounds on which the Bench decides whether the special court’s bail order survives.
Case Title: National Investigation Agency v. Sachin Waze (appeal against Special Court bail order)
Bench: Justice Girish Kulkarni and Justice Dr. Neela Gokhale, Bombay High Court
Date of Order: October 16, 2026 (verdict reserved)
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