Mumbai: We have not received full justice, said the Maharashtra Andhshraddha Nirmoolan Samiti (MANS) while reacting to the conviction of two persons for the murder of Dr Narendra Dabholkar, founder of the rationalist group. The group said they are happy that the murderers have been convicted but said that that the masterminds in the killing have got away scot-free.
Dabholkar was was shot dead by two assailants during a morning walk in Pune on August 20, 2013. The accused were arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) after it took over the case from Pune City police.
Nandkishore Talashilkar of the Samiti said that despite the CBI having taken over the case, the masterminds in the case were never caught. "Once we get a copy of the court order, we will ask the state to file an appeal against the order in the High Court and the Supreme Court. We have got full justice," said Talashilkar.
MANS was founded by Dabholkar in 1989 as a group to promote scientific reasoning in social and religious customs. The organisation said that it was unfortunate that it took 11 years for the case to reach the conviction stage.
After Dabholkar's killing, three other rationalists, including leftist politician Govind Pansare and academician M M Kalburgi, have been murdered in a similar way, the organisation alleged. "There was pressure on the investigation agencies from the government and this allowed some of the accused to go free because enough evidence was not collected against them," the organisation said in a statement.
