India, July 22 -- A day after the Bombay high court acquitted all 12 men convicted of planning and executing the July 11, 2006, serial bomb blasts on Mumbai's suburban rail network, including five on death row, the Maharashtra government on Tuesday rushed to the Supreme Court seeking a stay on the verdict and an urgent hearing on its appeal.

Solicitor general Tushar Mehta, appearing for the state government, mentioned the matter before Chief Justice of India (CJI) Bhushan R Gavai, requesting that the petition be heard without delay. The CJI agreed to list the case for a hearing on July 24, even as he remarked: "But we have been reading that some of them have already been released from jail."

Mehta acknowledged the development but added:...