The Bombay High Court on Tuesday told the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Special Investigation Team (SIT) to show “some real and concrete progress” in investigations into the murder of rationalists Govind Pansare and Narendra Dabholkar.
A division bench of Justice S C Dharmadhikari and Justice Shalini Phansalkar Joshi was hearing petitions filed by family members of Mr. Dabholkar and Mr. Pansare seeking investigations in their murders.
Additional Solicitor-General Anil Singh appearing for the CBI, which is probing the murder of Mr. Dabholkar, said the agency wished to send the bullets and ballistic reports of both to Scotland to seek expert opinion to check if the same weapon was used to kill them. He said the agency had received permission from the Pune court and was awaiting reply from Kolhapur court.
Chief public prosecutor Sandeep Shinde, representing the SIT in Mr. Pansare’s case, said they had filed a charge sheet against Sameer Gaikwad, a member of the right-wing Sanathan Sanstha, the sole accused in his murder. He also said the investigation was moving in the right direction.
The court has directed both the agencies to take inputs from the family members of the deceased and also from the first police stations where the cases were registered. The court told the agencies that if there was any shortage of staff or infrastructure they should inform the court.
The Bench also said if the investigating agencies were facing any direct or indirect obstacle, they should be bold enough to candidly say the same. The court has also told them to go beyond basic investigations and appoint high-level officers to personally monitor the probe. The court directed the agencies to exhibit more promptness in the investigations.
Mr. Dabholkar, an author and rationalist, was shot dead in Pune in August, 2013.
Govind Pansare, an author and a Communist Party of India member, was shot dead in Kolhapur in February last year.
