Maharashtra Leader of Opposition Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil will meet the Karnataka Home Minister G. Parameshwara in Bengaluru on Friday and seek his cooperation in raising the demand to ban right wing Sanatan Sanstha, whose name has surfaced in the murder cases of rationalists and journalist in Maharashtra and Karnataka.
“I will be meeting the Home Minister with a request to exchange more information regarding Sanatan Sanstha and other right wing outfits. Karnataka investigative agencies have done a remarkable job in tracking down the killers of Gauri Lankesh and have helped Maharashtra police as well. We will explore possibilities of pushing the demand of ban on this organisation,” said Mr Vikhe-Patil.
Based on information received from the arrested accused in journalist Gauri Lankesh murder case, Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) arrested one Vaibhav Raut of Hindu Goraksha Samiti from Nallasopara and two others. These arrests led to Sachin Andure, the alleged shooter in the 2013 murder of rationalist Dr. Narendra Dabholkar in Pune.
In wake of these arrests, Maharashtra’s Minister for State (Home) said a proposal to ban Sanatan Sanstha has been sent to the union government.
Mr. Vikhe-Patil has already demanded inquiry into Sanatan Sanstha founder Jayant Athawale as the organisation’s name has been mentioned by investigative agencies.