No party post to accused in Gauri Lankesh murder case: Shinde-led Sena
Mumbai, Oct 20: The Shiv Sena led by Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has stayed the appointment of Shrikant Pangarkar, an accused in the 2017 murder of journalist Gauri Lankesh, to any post in the party in Jalna district.
Ahead of the Maharashtra assembly polls, Pangarkar joined the Shinde-led Shiv Sena on Friday in the presence of party leader and former state minister Arjun Khotkar.
Khotkar earlier said that Pangarkar, a former Shiv Sainik, has returned to the party and has been nominated as the chief of the Jalna assembly poll campaign.
A statement from the Shiv Sena on Sunday said that if Pangarkar has been given any party post in Jalna district, the decision has been stayed.
Lankesh was shot dead outside her home in Karnataka capital Bengaluru on September 5, 2017.
A probe by police in Karnataka with assistance from agencies in Maharashtra had led to the arrest of several persons.
Pangarkar, a Jalna municipal councillor of the undivided Shiv Sena between 2001and 2006, was arrested in August 2018 and was granted bail by the Karnataka High Court on September 4 this year.
After Pangarkar was denied a ticket by the Shiv Sena in 2011, he joined the right-wing Hindu Janjagruti Samiti.
Khotkar earlier said he wants to contest the assembly poll from Jalna, but added that seat-sharing discussions in the Mahayuti (ruling alliance comprising Shiv Sena, BJP and Ajit Pawar-led NCP) were underway.
The seat is held by Congress' Kailash Gorantyal.
The Maharashtra assembly polls will be held on November 20, while results will be declared on November 23.
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Karnataka govt revokes suspension of DGP Ramachandra Rao, reinstates him
Bengaluru (PTI): The Karnataka government on Wednesday revoked the suspension order of DGP K Ramachandra Rao and reinstated him into service with immediate effect.
According to the official order, the 1993-batch IPS officer has been posted, with immediate effect and until further orders, as Director General of Police (Police Manual).
"The post of Director General of Police (Police Manual) is declared equivalent in status and responsibilities to the cadre post of Director General of Police, Criminal Investigation Department, Special Units and Economic Offences, Bengaluru, under Rule 12 of the IPS (Pay) Rules, 2016, as included in Schedule II of the said rules," the government order stated.
Rao, who was then serving as Director General of Police (Civil Rights Enforcement), was placed under suspension with immediate effect on January 19, citing conduct unbecoming of a government servant and causing embarrassment to the state administration.
News channels had beamed videos purportedly showing Rao in a compromising position with women. The videos had also gone viral on social media.
Rao is the stepfather of Kannada actress Harshavardhini Ranya, alias Ranya Rao, who is accused of orchestrating the illegal import of gold worth over Rs 12.56 crore from Dubai to India along with two others--businessman Tarun Raju and jewellery dealer Sahil Jain.
Ranya was apprehended at Bengaluru's Kempegowda International Airport on March 3, 2025, with 14.8 kilograms of gold allegedly smuggled from Dubai.
