Pragya Thakur's co-accused condemns Karkare remarks, but to back poll bid
Pune, Apr 21: A co-accused in the 2008 Malegaon blast case Sunday denounced BJP Bhopal Lok Sabha candidate Pragya Singh Thakur's comments against former Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad chief Hemant Karkare but added that he would still campaign for her to defeat the Congress' Digvijaya Singh there.
Sameer Kulkarni, a Malegaon blast accused out on bail currently, addressed a press conference here and stressed that no one had the right to make such remarks against Karkare who laid down his life fighting terrorists.
"Not only Sadhvi (Thakur), no one has the right to make such remarks. Because making such remarks against bravehearts is sheer ingratitude towards their supreme sacrifices," Kulkarni said.
However, taking a stand supporting Thakur, he added, "While in custody for several years in the blast case, we, including Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur, were subjected to unlimited torture. It is possible Sadhvi made that statement out of anguish."
"However, realising her mistake, she apologised," he said, adding that her statement should not be politicised.
Informing that he would be campaigning for Thakur in Bhopal, Kulkarni said, "Sadhvi is not a politician but she is fighting against adharma. She is fighting against Digvijaya Singh and to defeat Singh, we would go there (to campaign)," he said.
He accused the Congress and Nationalist Congress Party of being "anti-Hindu" and said the two parties had made them (blast accused) "scapegoats" in 2008.
"The NCP and Congress came to power on the basis of majority Hindu votes. Senior leaders Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi, A K Antony, P Chidambaram, Digvijaya Singh and NCP president Sharad Pawar have taken an anti-Hindu stand from time to time," Kulkarni alleged.
"The Congress and NCP created a fake narrative about Hindu terrorism and put several innocent Hindus behind bars by implicating them in false cases. But it was because of the judiciary and a few honest police officers that several people like us got bail," he said.
Kulkarni got bail in the Malegaon blast case in 2017.
Thakur, an accused in the case who is out on bail, is under fire for saying that Karkare died in the 26/11 terror attack because she had cursed him for `torturing' her when he probed the Malegaon blast as chief of the ATS.
Six people were killed and over 100 injured when an explosive device strapped on a motorcycle went off near a mosque in Malegaon, a town about 200 km from here in north Maharashtra, on September 29, 2008.
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“Goli maro…” slogan raised as ABVP-linked group disrupts play at University of Hyderabad
Hyderabad: A group allegedly linked to the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) disrupted a theatre performance at the University of Hyderabad on Sunday evening. The group is also accused of vandalising property and assaulting students.
Slogans such as “Desh ke gaddaron ko, goli maro…” were raised during the incident, according to eyewitnesses.
According to the Observer Post, the disruption happened as Mahesh Elkunchwar's play Holi was being staged at the Department of Theatre Arts' GB Hall. The group reportedly objected to certain portions of the play, claiming that some phrases hurt religious sentiments.
According to accounts from those present, the situation escalated when individuals forced their way into the venue after damaging fixtures and breaking glass panels outside the auditorium. Students attempting to intervene were reportedly assaulted, and a guest faculty member was allegedly threatened.
Several students sustained injuries and were provided initial treatment at the campus health centre before being shifted to a nearby hospital.
Police later arrived at the scene, brought the situation under control, and escorted those inside the hall to safety. Witnesses said tensions remained high, with some members of the group continuing to raise slogans during the evacuation.
