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Journalism of Courage
The CBI has claimed to have cracked the Haren Pandya murder case with the identification of the man who pulled the trigger but there are some sticking points.
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Muslims seek probe
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| HYDERABAD: The Joint Action Committee (JAC) of Muslim bodies has demanded a judicial inquiry into the killing of former Gujarat minister Haren Pandya. ‘‘The inquiry is needed to ensure justice to the five persons arrested by the CBI,’’ Tameer-e-millat chief Moulana Abdul Raheem Qureshi said. ‘‘We are afraid that justice will not be done to them in Gujarat’’ and demanded that ‘‘they be prosecuted in some other state’’. (PTI) |
But while the CBI has refused to divulge details of the case, Minister of State for Home Amit Shah has issued a three-page release on the killing, based on investigations of the crime branch of police. This, when the CBI is officially investigating the case.
Shah’s statement says that, according to investigations conducted by the DCB, it was local Muslim clerics Mufti Ahmedmian Suffian and Mulla Kalim who had at the instance of Pakistan-based underworld gangs and agencies directed Asghar Ali to kill Pandya.
Though the CBI hasn’t said anything about the motive for the killing, Shah’s statement says the intention was to create panic. It says the revolver used was provided by one Anas, and that autorickshaw driver Sohel Khan helped Ali make good his escape. The clerics, Anas, and Sohel are yet to be arrested.
Speaking to The Indian Express, JCP (Crime) P.P. Pandey said it was after the arrest of five ‘‘ISI agents’’ from the city on April 4 that involvement of the Hyderabad-based accused came to light.
‘‘We learnt from them about the accused,’’ he said. The five ‘‘ISI agents’’— Mohammed Parvez, Mohammed Yunus, Mohammed Riaz, Rehan Puthawala and Munaver Baig — were arrested by the DCB on night of April 4 on the basis of specific information received from central intelligence. All five are residents of the old city and run small businesses.
Yet another discrepancy concerns the getaway vehicle used in the killing. Eye-witnesses told police the killer had escaped on a waiting scooter, but Shah’s statement says the killer escaped on a motorcycle. The CBI has not specified the type of the vehicle. Of this discrepancy, Pandey said: ‘‘Please ask the CBI about it. Our investigations reveal that a motorcycle was used.’’
CBI deputy superintendent Susheel Kumar Gupta, who brought Asghar and others here from Delhi, was not available for comment despite many attempts to contact him.
There is also the fact that although both the CBI and police have made claims about knowing how the crime was carried out, they haven’t yet located the revolver used.
While seeking remand of the accused, the CBI told the court they were yet to establish where the killer stayed in the city and for how long — this when the CBI claims the killer has already made a confession.
Moreover, Asghar has not so far been identified by any of the three eyewitnesses, whose descriptions of the killer differed, making it difficult for the CBI to make a sketch in the first place.
Commenting on the CBI claims, Vitthalbhai Pandya, father of the slain ex-minister and BJP leader, said: ‘‘It is all pre-planned and now they are speeding up the matter because public opinion is growing against them.’’
