The Bombay high court on Friday stayed the trial in the serial bomb blasts, which occurred at Mulund, Vile Parle and Mumbai Central in Mumbai between December 2002 and March 2003.

Justice H L Gokhale and Justice V K Tahilramani stayed the trial and referred the matter to a larger bench after prime accused in the Mulund blast, Saquib Nachan, moved the high court with four applications seeking transfer of the trial from the designated POTA court to any other court in Maharashtra.

Nachan has also demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation probe into last year's encounter at suburban Goregaon, where three suspected Lashkar-e-Tayiba militants have been shot dead.

The police claimed that these LeT militants had masterminded the blasts, and had planned to eliminate key politicians in the state capital.

Nachan has asked for a CBI probe into the 'panchnama' (seizure report) of the recoveries made from him at the time of his arrest.

Meanwhile, the trial in Mulund bomb blast, which was slated to begin on July 17 and deferred due to Nachan's applications, has been further adjourned till September 8.