NCP Leader Chhagan Bhujbal Calls for Swift Justice in Related Murder Cases After Dabholkar Verdict

Nashik: Two persons have been sentenced to life imprisonment and three others acquitted in the Dr Narendra Dabholkar murder case due to lack of evidence. The verdict comes 11 years after Dabholkar's murder. The killings of Narendra Dabholkar, Communist Leader Govind Pansare, Profer MM Kalburgi and Journalist Gauri Lankesh have long been suggested to be linked. In the light of this, Senior NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal said, "The common man expects that the culprits of those crimes should also be exposed soon and punished by the god of justice."

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Bhujbal was speaking to reporters after the court announced the punishment of the accused in the Dabholkar murder case. The accused in the Dabholkar case could not be traced for a long time. Two of them have since been sentenced to life in prison, but three have been acquitted due to lack of evidence. "Like Dabholkar, Pansare, Kalburgi and Gauri Lankesh were social reformers who spoke on superstition and the wrong aspects of society. He had also repeatedly demanded steps against superstition and enacting laws."

"Later, the state government also enacted an anti-superstition law. Whether or not it's effective is another matter, but the law was created by social workers like him. Newspapers at the time said the murders of the four were linked to each other." Bhujbal further said that the people want the culprits to be solved and punished soon.