Narendra Dabholkar murder case: Maharashtra court frames charges against 5 accused
Pune(PTI): A special court in Pune on Wednesday framed charges against five accused in the case of murder of anti-superstition activist Dr Narendra Dabholkar.
Dabholkar, who headed the Maharashtra Andhashraddha Nirmoolan Samiti, was shot dead in Pune on August 20, 2013, allegedly by members of a right-wing extremist group. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is conducting a probe into the case.
A criminal trial starts once charges are framed.
On Wednesday, Additional Sessions Judge S R Navandar (special judge for UAPA cases) asked the five accused - Virendra Sinh Tawde, Sachin Andure, Sharad Kalaskar, Sanjeev Punalekar and Vikram Bhave, - if they pleaded guilty, to which all of them replied in the negative.
Tawde, Kalaskar and Andure, who appeared via video-conferencing from their respective jails, sought more time from the court, citing that they want to discuss the matter with their lawyers.
The court, however, rejected the plea.
The other two accused- advocate Punalekar and Bhave - appeared in the court physically.
The court framed charges against Tawde, Andure, Kalaskar, and Bhave under Indian Penal Code (IPC) Sections 302 (murder), 120 (B) (criminal conspiracy), 34 (common intention), relevant sections of the Arms Act, and Section 16 of the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) (punishment for terrorist act).
Besides, the charges against Punalekar were framed under IPC Section 201 (causing disappearance of the evidence or giving false inform to screen offender).
CBI lawyer and special public prosecutor Prakash Suryavanshi later said the charges have been framed and further proceedings for the trial in the case have been scheduled on September 30.
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Bengaluru jail introduces biometric tracking system for prisoners
Bengaluru: In a bid to curb misconduct and illegal activities inside Parappana Agrahara Central Prison, prison authorities have introduced a new ‘Prisoners Tracking Movement System’ under which inmates will have to undergo biometric verification while entering every barrack.
According to jail officials, biometric systems have been installed across all major sections of the prison, including barracks, visitor rooms, hospital, canteen, kitchen, library, playground, handicraft units and bakery sections. Staff members have also been deployed at these locations.
Officials said inmates visiting the visitors’ room must now obtain a digital token after biometric verification. Details such as the prisoner’s name, identification number and entry time will be updated in the prison software system. This will help authorities maintain a complete digital record of inmates visiting and returning from meeting rooms.
Similar systems have also been introduced at entry points of the hospital, library and other barracks accessed for work-related purposes. Officials said the system will help identify prisoners involved in suspicious or illegal activities with other inmates and enable authorities to track how much time a prisoner spends at different locations inside the prison.
Authorities stated that AI-powered cameras were already being used inside the prison to monitor inmates as well as prison staff. Along with this, digital tracking of prisoner phone calls and a digital token system for visitor meetings have now been added to strengthen surveillance over inmate movement. Officials said the project has been implemented at a cost of around Rs 2.25 crore.
The prison department has also introduced a canteen usage tracking system to monitor prisoners’ spending patterns. Instead of direct cash payments, inmates can purchase bakery items and snacks using wallets or coupons issued within the prison system.
Officials said the digital system will record details including the buyer’s name, items purchased, quantity, date, time and remaining wallet balance. This will allow prison authorities to maintain complete expenditure records of inmates.
