An RTI activist who has filed a PIL against granting 16 per cent reservation to Marathas, has fled Maharashtra fearing threat to his life. “I apprehend that I will meet the same fate as late Shri Dr. Narendra Dhabolkar, in whose case also the State was an active participant,” Ketan Tirodkar has said in a letter submitted to the Registrar of the Bombay High Court.
He has claimed that the activists of Sambhaji Brigade and other affiliated Maratha organisations have threatened to kill him. “I informed the court that I will not be able to appear for my matters for a few days now, as I fear I will be killed. I have left the State,” Mr Tirodkar told The Hindu from an undisclosed location.
A poster posted on the Facebook account of Sambhaji Brigademumbai said, “It seems you don’t love your life anymore, Ketan Tirodkar. Tell us what your last wish is.”
Another one said throwing ink was only the beginning. A few activists of Maratha Sangharsha Samiti had thrown black ink on Mr Tirodkar on June 30 in the perimeter of the Bombay High Court, protesting against the petition he had filed.
A day after the incident, Mr Tirodkar submitted a letter to the Registrar of the court, “Various organisations boasted about the said incident on Facebook and other social networking sites, and furthermore, appealed to their supporters to kill me. I have also seen ‘whatsapp’ messages been circulated since the last few days, which are viciously against me. I have been warned personally by well-wishers and well-meaning lay citizens, about possible and serious threats to my life.”
But the chairperson of Maratha Sangharsha Samiti refuted Mr Tirodkar’s claim. “We threw ink on him to protest against his act of opposing reservation for our community. We have not issued any death threat to him. This is a matter of principles. Why would we want to kill Ketan Tirodkar?” Manish Wadje asked.
Mr Tirodkar said he did not wish to approach the police about his grievance as he believed that they had been ordered by the ruling politicians to not offer protection to him. “In any case, the police can suo motto decide to provide protection to social activists and RTI activists who face such threats. They don’t have to wait for the activist to approach them,” Mr Tirodkar claimed.
Former IPS officer Y P Singh said the police have to assess the risk to an activist. “Yes, they can suo motto provide protection to social activists and RTI activists if their assessment finds that the person requires protection,” he told The Hindu . He said that under the Code of Criminal Procedure and the Bombay Police Act, the police are responsible for maintaining law and order, and this formed a part of it.
