The Bombay High Court on Wednesday granted bail to nine persons arrested in connection with the communal riots that erupted in Maharashtra’s Nagpur in March, PTI reported.

The violence in Nagpur on March 17 took place hours after Hindutva groups held a protest in the city demanding that Mughal emperor Aurangzeb’s tomb located in Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar be removed.

Justice Urmila Joshi-Phalke of the Nagpur bench noted that the custody of the nine arrested persons was not needed anymore.

The persons who were granted bail are Absar Ansari, Ashfaquulla Aminullah, Ejaz Ansari, Iftekar Ansari, Iqbal Ansari, Izhar Ansari, Mohammad Rahil, Mohammad Yasir and Muzzamil Ansari.

They have been charged under sections of the Arms Act, the Maharashtra Police Act, Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act, Maharashtra Prevention of Defacement of Property Act and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

Their counsel had argued that the investigation had been completed, because of which their custody was no longer necessary.

The prosecution had opposed the bail plea. The Hindu quoted Senior Public Prosecutor DV Chauhan as having argued that the alleged actions of the nine persons amounted to a “form of terrorism” and posed a threat to public order.

The court noted that bail was the rule and jail was the exception, the Hindustan Times reported. It granted bail to the men on a personal bond of Rs 1 lakh each.

The bench said that the bail would be cancelled if a crime of similar nature was registered against them, The Hindu reported. The accused men were also warned against tampering with the prosecution evidence or threatening witnesses.

One-hundred and twenty-three persons, including 19 minors, were arrested in connection with the violence.

In March, Hindutva groups such as the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal had stepped up their campaign to demand the removal of Aurangzeb’s tomb, claiming that the structure is a “symbol of pain and slavery”.

The two groups convened protests in several cities in Maharashtra on March 17.

Hours after the protest by a Hindutva group, clashes erupted in central Nagpur’s Chitnis Park at 7.30 pm. Stones were thrown at the police amid rumours that a cloth with the Islamic declaration of faith, known as the Kalma, had been burnt during an agitation by a Hindutva group in the late afternoon.

The police, however, denied that such a cloth was burnt.

Another clash erupted in Hansapuri, an area close to Chitnis Park, between 10.30 pm and 11.30 pm. The violence also spread to the Kotwali and Ganeshpeth areas.

Several police personnel were injured in the violence. One civilian succumbed to his injuries five days after the riots.