Some commonality in Dabholkar, Pansare killings: CBI, CID to Bombay HC
Mumbai, Jun 14: The CBI and Maharashtra CID told the Bombay High Court on Friday that it had, to some extent, established commonality between the killings of rationalist Narendra Dabholkar and activist Govind Pansare.
A division bench of Justices S C Dharmadhikari and Gautam Patel was told that in the Dabholkar case all the accused have been arrested but the weapon used in the crime is yet to be recovered.
The CBI informed the court that an operation will be carried out within a month to search and retrieve four country-made pistols, which were allegedly dismantled and thrown by the accused into a creek in adjoining Thane district.
"We are awaiting necessary permissions from government agencies to undertake the operation," CBI counsel Anil Singh told the court.
The bench then noted that the operation should not be delayed and should be carried out before onset of monsoon.
CID counsel Ashok Mundargi told the court that in the Pansare case the main conspirators have been arrested and efforts are on to nab the assailants.
The bench then asked if investigations carried out so far had pointed out to any commonalities between the two crimes.
"Yes, to some extent commonality is established between the two crimes," Mundargi said.
The bench, however, noted that there was something lacking in the probe in the Pansare case.
"We feel like there is some spark missing in this case. It is not the case that the shooters will never be arrested. They will be nabbed one day. But it should have been done by now," the court said.
"It is the credibility of the probe agency that is at stake. It is a case where eminent persons like Dabholkar and Pansare have been killed," it added.
The court said the government has to provide all assistance and guidance to the probe agencies in such cases.
"Political leaders, who are in power, and made promises to the public that they stand for peace and constitutional rights of citizens should ensure this," the court said.
The court was hearing petitions filed by the family of Dabholkar and Pansare seeking court supervision in the probe being carried out by the CID and the CBI.
Dabholkar, a well-known anti-superstition activist, was shot dead on August 20, 2013 in Pune.
Pansare was shot on February 16, 2015 near his house in Kolhapur in western Maharashtra. He died four days later.
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Rajnath to top commanders: Outmaneuver adversaries with strategic surprise
Jaipur/New Delhi (PTI): Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday directed the top military commanders of the three services to integrate an "element of surprise" into modern warfare to outmaneuver India's adversaries and bolster strategic posture.
In his address at the joint commanders conference in Jaipur, Singh also described the Operation Sindoor as a testament to the "swift, precise, and joint response" of the Indian armed forces to safeguard national interests and called upon the military to remain ready to deal with any security challenges.
In their two-day deliberations, the commanders carried out a comprehensive review of the combat preparedness of the military in the wake of the evolving regional security situation.
Operation Sindoor was a demonstration of India's growing capabilities and a symbol of the nation's collective resolve and new military ethos, Singh said, a day after the first anniversary of Operation Sindoor.
He also unveiled a 'Joint Doctrine for Integrated Communication Architecture' that is aimed at strengthening doctrinal clarity, interoperability and integrated communications across the armed forces in future multidomain operations.
The joint commanders' conference, themed 'Military Capability in New Domains', brought together the top leadership of the defence ministry and the three services to deliberate on emerging security challenges and future readiness.
Comprehensive deliberations were held on future warfare, multidomain operations, technological transformation and joint capability development.
The conference witnessed extensive discussions on cognitive warfare, cyber resilience against evolving quantum and AI-enabled threats, military capability development in emerging domains, indigenous innovation and AI-enabled warfighting concepts.
It was attended by Chief of Defence Staff Gen Anil Chauhan, Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Dinesh Kumar Tripathi, Chief of the Army Staff Gen Upendra Dwivedi, Chief of the Air Staff Air Chief Marshal AP Singh and Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh among others.
In his remarks, Singh asked the commanders to remain "future-ready" by learning from the operation as well as the current global security landscape.
He underscored the need to strengthen capabilities in artificial intelligence, autonomous systems, data analytics and secure communication networks to stay prepared in the rapidly evolving geopolitical security scenario. He emphasised that future conflicts will increasingly be shaped by hybrid threats, information dominance and operations conducted simultaneously across cyber, space, electromagnetic and cognitive domains, according to an official readout.
Highlighting the transformative impact of emerging technologies, Singh stressed on the importance of ensuring integrated national preparedness across all spectrums of conflict, it said.
Singh's remarks at the conference came a day after the first anniversary of Operation Sindoor.
The defence minister appreciated the progress achieved in enhancing jointness, integration and technological adoption across the three services, the readout noted.
Singh said that jointness constitutes a pivotal dimension within the transformative changes sweeping across the global defence sector.
"Future wars will not be won solely through weaponry, but through innovative thinking and enhanced synergy," he said.
The defence minister exhorted the commanders to cultivate the "element of surprise" to remain unpredictable to the nation's adversaries and secure a strategic edge in any given situation.
He, however, urged them to remain vigilant of the element of surprise of the enemy and always stay two steps ahead.
Singh also reiterated the Narendra Modi government's commitment to enhancing the capabilities of the defence forces through state-of-the-art weapons and platforms. He added that special focus is being laid on research in niche domains.
During the conference, he released a documentary film on Operation Sindoor.
The film reaffirms the nation's and defence forces' commitment to operational preparedness and decisive national response capabilities.
Demonstrations of advanced systems and platforms developed for intelligence fusion, operational planning and information management were also showcased during the conference reflecting growing integration of cutting-edge technologies into joint operational structures, according to the defence ministry.
The discussions will contribute significantly towards shaping India's future military transformation and integrated operational preparedness, it said.
