Narendra Dabholkar Murder Case: Bombay HC Grants Bail To Convict Sachin Andure, Suspends Life Sentence Pending Appeal

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Tuesday granted bail to Sachin Andure, convicted in the 2013 murder case of rationalist Narendra Dabholkar.

A bench of Justices Sarang Kotwal and Ranjitsinha Bhonsale also suspended the life sentence handed to Andure by a sessions court in 2024. A detailed order copy is awaited. 

Andure, who is also facing trial for his alleged role in the killing of activist Govind Pansare, can walk out of jail now as he has secured bail in both the cases.

Dabholkar, 67, the founder of the Maharashtra Andhashraddha Nirmoolan Samiti, an anti-superstition organisation, was shot dead by two motorcycle-borne assailants while on a morning walk in Pune on August 20, 2013. He was shot by persons allegedly linked to the radical outfit Sanatan Sanstha.

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Initially, the case was probed by the Deccan police station, Pune. Following a petition by his daughter Mukta Dabholkar, the investigation was transferred to the CBI in 2014.  

According to the prosecution, Andure is one of the shooters. 

On May 10, 2024, the Sessions Court convicted Sachin Andure and Sharad Kalaskar for Dabholkar’s murder, sentencing them to life in prison. However, they were acquitted of charges under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and the Arms Act. The court also acquitted Virendra Singh Tawde, Sanjiv Punalekar, and Vikram Bhave, citing insufficient evidence.  

Andure challenged his conviction before the high court. Pending hearing on appeal, he sought bail and suspension of his sentence. The HC allowed this application on Tuesday.

Dabholkar's daughter Mukta had also filed an appeal before the HC challenging the acquittals in the case and the exclusion of UAPA charges against Andure and Kalaskar. She alleged in her plea that the murder was part of a larger conspiracy by right-wing extremists.

Dabholkar’s murder was the first in a chain of similar killings of three other rationalists and activists – Govind Pansare in Kolhapur in February 2015, Kannada-language scholar MM Kalburgi in Dharwad in August 2015, and journalist Gauri Lankesh in Bengaluru in September 2017.

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