Accused Tawde asked Hindutva activist to make pistol replica, arrange for bullets, says prosecution
Dabholkar murder case
Pune, Jun 18: Virendrasinh Tawde, the prime accused in the rationalist Narendra Dabholkar murder case, had asked Sanjay Sadvilkar, now a key prosecution witness, to arrange for bullets, code-named "chocolates", and make a pistol replica, the prosecution said on Saturday.
This was revealed by Sadvilkar during his examination in the special court by special public prosecutor (SPP) Prakash Suryawanshi.
"Sanjay Sadvilkar who owned a shop selling idols etc. told the court that due to his business he was attracted to a Hindutva organisation. He got in touch with Dr Tawde, an accused in the Dabholkar murder case, and started working with him occasionally. On the occasion of Sant Gadge Maharaj jayanti, Tawde had a verbal spat with Dabholkar," Suryawanshi said quoting Sadvilkar.
Sadvilkar later stopped social work after he suffered a heart attack, he said.
"Tawde again met him and asked if he could do some business. Sadvilkar was then called at a railway crossing where he was introduced to a person. Sadvilkar was told that person will bring him a revolver and a pistol and he should make a replica," the special public prosecutor said.
Sadvilkar was shown a pistol but he asked the man to let him see the pistol from the inside to make a replica.
"Sadvilkar then rented a flat to do the work. Later Tawde started calling Sadvilkar repeatedly. On one occasion, he told Sadvilkar that a man sent by him had come with a revolver to his shop. Sadvilkar grew suspicious that he might be framed and contacted a police officer he knew, but the officer was not present," Suryawanshi said.
Later, Tawde called him up and said he was sending two men to stay at his place for keeping a watch on certain people coming and going to work.
Suryawanshi said Tawde then met Sadvilkar and asked him to do the "final job" to arrange for "chocolates", a code name for bullets.
Dabholkar was shot dead on August 20, 2013, when he was on a morning walk on the Onkareshwar Bridge in Pune.
"After Dabholkar was shot dead, Sadvilkar contacted the police and informed them about his meeting with Tawde and other incidents. He recorded his statements with the ATS and the CBI," the SPP said.
Sadvilkar's cross-examination will be conducted on July 8.
In June 2014, the CBI took over the Dabholkar murder probe following an order by the Bombay High Court. Based on a witness statement made by Hindutva activist Sanjay Sadvilkar, the CBI arrested ENT surgeon Dr Virendrasinh Tawade, who was linked to the radical outfit Sanatan Sanstha, in June 2016. According to CBI, Tawde was one of the masterminds behind the murder conspiracy.
Besides Tawde, two alleged shooters Sachin Andure and Sharad Kalaskar- were also arrested.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
