The man behind the outfit which vandalised the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute (BORI) is a PWD engineer with enough political connections for the state government to dither on acting against him.Purushottam Khedekar heads the Maratha Seva Sangh (MSS), whose Sambhaji Brigade carried out the attack. Khedekar’s wife Rekha is a BJP MLA from Chikhli in Buldhana district.Posted in Pune, he is known to be close to several ministers of the NCP. It is said that Khedekar, a middle-level officer, enjoys as much political clout as the PWD Secretary. Even now, the Democratic Front government is taking a guarded stand regarding Monday’s attack, purportedly organised to protest the disparaging remarks made against Shivaji in James Laine’s book Shivaji: Hindu King in Islamic India.State Home Minister R.R. Patil today promised action against Khedekar provided he was found involved. However, he added, ‘‘We condemn the attack and also distorting of the history of Chhatrapati Shivaji. The government is seeking legal opinion to ascertain if any action can be taken against the author and also whether the book can be banned.’’Deputy CM Vijaysinh Mohite-Patil, who heads the PWD, was not willing to comment. ‘‘Let police complete the investigation. The department will consider any action if the probe points a finger at him,’’ he said.Clearly, Khedekar is not your average government servant. The influence he wields is obvious from the fact that though he’s been held on corruption charges, his career remains on course.
