The killings of rationalists Narendra Dabholkar and Govind Pansare were "well-planned" and there was a "clear nexus" between the two killings, the Bombay High Court said yesterday, asking the investigators to look beyond their current line of probe
Narendra Dabholkar and Govind Pansare
The killings of rationalists Narendra Dabholkar and Govind Pansare were "well-planned" and there was a "clear nexus" between the two killings, the Bombay High Court said yesterday, asking the investigators to look beyond their current line of probe to apprehend the culprits.
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'Not stray incidents'
"The reports reveal that these were clearly not one or two stray incidents. Certain organisations must be backing them, helping them financially. These incidents were well-planned," observed the bench of Justices SC Dharmadhikari and Vibha Kankanwadi, after perusing the probe reports submitted by the state CID and the CBI in both cases.
Considering that Sarang Akolkar and Vinay Pawar, the two men identified by the CBI as those who allegedly gunned down Dabholkar in 2013, were still to be traced, the court said the agency must "look beyond its current line of probe."
'Track suspects with tech'
"There is a clear nexus between the two murders. These men must have some roots in the society. Coordinate with the state CID, use modern technology, look at bank transactions, ATM withdrawals, check rail bookings; there are just four or five states with porous borders to which these men could have fled," Justice Dharmadhikari said.
The bench directed the two probe agencies to submit fresh reports by September 13. It directed the family members of the deceased rationalists to submit an affidavit listing their demand that the state Home secretary and the CBI director be made directly accountable for the probe.
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