May 10th 2024.
In a significant turn of events, a special court in Pune, Maharashtra has delivered its verdict on the murder case of renowned rationalist Narendra Dabholkar. The court has sentenced two men, Sachin Andure and Sharad Kalaskar, to life imprisonment, while acquitting three others, including the main accused Virendrasinh Tawde. The incident, which shook the nation, took place on August 20, 2013, when Dabholkar, a vocal opponent of superstition, was shot dead while on his morning walk on Omkareshwar Bridge.
The courtroom was filled with anticipation as Additional Sessions Judge P P Jadhav read out the verdict. After careful consideration of the evidence presented by the prosecution, the court found Andure and Kalaskar guilty of murder and conspiracy, and has imposed a fine of Rs 5 lakh on them. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had stated that Andure and Kalaskar were responsible for carrying out the heinous act.
However, the court has also acquitted the other accused in the case - ENT surgeon Tawde, Sanjeev Punalekar, and Vikram Bhave - due to lack of evidence. The prosecution had presented 20 witnesses, while the defense called upon two witnesses during the trial. It was revealed that the accused were opposed to Dabholkar's crusade against superstition, which was the motive behind the murder.
Initially, the Pune police were handling the case, but it was later handed over to the CBI in 2014 following a Bombay High Court order. The agency made its first arrest in June 2016, when Tawde, who was associated with the Hindu right-wing organization Sanatan Sanstha, was taken into custody. The prosecution claimed that Tawde was one of the masterminds behind the murder, as the Sanstha was against Dabholkar's work with the Maharashtra Andhashraddha Nirmoolan Samiti.
The CBI initially named two fugitives, Sarang Akolkar and Vinay Pawar, as the shooters in their charge sheet. However, after the arrest of Andure and Kalaskar, the agency presented a supplementary charge sheet, stating that they were the ones who shot Dabholkar. Subsequently, two more individuals, advocate Sanjeev Punalekar and Vikram Bhave, were arrested as alleged co-conspirators.
During the trial, one of the defense lawyers, advocate Virendra Ichalkaranjikar, raised questions about the CBI's change in stance regarding the identity of the shooters. The accused were charged under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, the Arms Act, and the Unlawful Activities Act (UAPA).
While Tawde, Andure, and Kalaskar are currently in jail, Punalekar and Bhave have been granted bail. The brutal murder of Dabholkar was followed by the killings of three other rationalists/activists in the next four years - Govind Pansare, M M Kalburgi, and Gauri Lankesh. It is believed that the perpetrators in all four cases were connected to each other.
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