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On December 29, 2007, exactly 10 months before the blast, Joshi was shot dead by killers on two bikes while he was out on an evening stroll in Chuna Khadan, not far from the one-room dwelling in Dewas where he stayed with four other men.
Joshi, in his late 30s at the time of his death, had been an RSS pracharak in Mhow till 2003. That year, he was accused in the murders of tribal Congress leader Pyar Singh Ninama and his son. Ninama had cut off Joshi’s locks in public, and the murders were allegedly committed to avenge the ‘humiliation’. Twelve others were accused in the case. Joshi disappeared, and had been on the run.
Joshi’s four roommates disappeared the day he was murdered. Dewas Police have since named them—Mohan, Ghanshyam, Rajsingh and Mani alias Ustad—and said they are suspects in Joshi’s murder. They believe the names could be fake. Investigations have not progressed further.
A police sub-inspector at Dewas told The Indian Express on condition of anonymity that a man called Ramnarayan had been the first to reach Joshi’s body after he was shot. This man, who lived nearby, is believed to have taken away the mobile phone that Joshi was using. The man has disappeared since. It is not known if this ‘Ramnarayan’ is same as the Ramnarayan Kalsangra that the Maharashtra ATS is looking for in connection with the Malegaon blast.
The police have made no attempt to trace Joshi’s cell phone, track the number, or check his call details. Off the record, officials said that there had been pressure “right from the top” to go slow in the matter.
Joshi was living incognito in Dewas, hiding behind a long beard, which was probably also the reason people called him ‘Guruji’. Neighbours thought he was a religious preacher, and referred to his humble dwelling as ‘ashram’. Joshi spoke with almost no one. Almost no one visited him. Sadhvi Pragya was an occasional visitor.
The so-called ‘ashram’, with a plastic sheet as its roof and a tree in front, is at one end of a long, narrow lane connecting the slum to the highway. “He would pace the backyard and emerge in the evening to buy milk,” his landlady said.
Dewas SP Dr Mayank Jain, who took charge four months ago, said: “We are clueless about the murderers or the motive.” He said police realised Joshi and his roommates were absconding accused from the 2003 Mhow double murder case only after Joshi was killed in 2007.
Joshi’s brother Anil is a peon in the state education department, and lives in Vikasnagar with his wife and three daughters. Anil Joshi’s wife said Joshi visited the family frequently, but “he would hardly speak to me or other family members”. She said she had no idea about his activities, either in Mhow or in Dewas. According to Anil’s family, Joshi moved to Dewas to be close to them. The brothers’ father, also an employee of the education department, had died of cancer a few years ago. Their mother died five months after Joshi was murdered. Anil’s family said Joshi had visited them the day before he was killed.
A day after Joshi’s murder, the local RSS called a bandh. Hindu organisations blamed the murder on SIMI, and a Muslim youth, Abdul Rashid, was killed in Sutarkheda village, about 30 kms from Dewas. Jain said four people affiliated with Hindu organisations had been arrested in connection with Abdul Rashid’s murder.
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I fail to understand why everything which an accused states is disbelievd by some people. What if he or she is actually being falsely implicated by a corupt political group in power, who can very well use the Police as pawns. Have we forgotten how this was shamelessly done during the Emergency, and by whom?
this magical sadhvi sold her motorbike to dead person, what a net of lies in the name of religion and dharma, i m ashamed
u are a moron dude... bike was sold in 2004. He was killed in 2007 blast took place in 2008... so what's the proff of sadhvi pragya's connection..
It's turning out to be a shame for the whole society, that a majority is involved in such activities. This is nothing but religious fanatics and misuse of the sentiments of the public in the name of religion. Wake up people and through out any such anti-national elements.
The dangerous marriage between terrorists and politicians, terror outfits and political parties, will spell doom and distruction for our country. Terror has become a religion, which does not operate on any rules. Evil and wickedness is the foundation of these outfits. People are glorifying these terrorists as patriotic. These very same people do not know that in a bomb blast - they themselves could be the next victim. Open your eyes country men, do not get blinded by the evil spirit of religion. May God enlighten you to see between good and evil. We have got to rise above this plague of hatred. By being tolerant and brotherly to one another. Violence only breeds violence, and protecting the guilty will cause an unstoppable cancer to kill the basic fabric of our nation. It is already late. Much damage has been done, we are harming ourselves. let us get rid of religious parties destroying our country(RSS, Bajrang Dal, VHP and many others) May God have mercy on our Country.
There is more than meets the eye in this entire Malegaon episode. It appears that the Lt Col, pragya thakur etc are pawns in someone's (??SIMI/ISI) game plan to discredit the armed forces so that Indian's highly integral/ nationalist armed services are weakened from within and her well protected borders become porous. We should be asking who constitute the ATS team investigating all this and 1st check out if they come with a clean history/ track record. The whole episode reads like some crazy story born out of 'Main hoon na'; 'Shaurya'- I think a 'Fanaa'(Post intermission) is waiting to happen.
This is a strange article with lot of gossip in it. Most of the contents are fabricated to malign RSS and BJP but the fabrication is very clever too. Sadvi Pragya was arrested because her bike is used. The bike is sold to a the best buyer in 2004. Normally I too will sell my bike if not used, to a buyer who pays the best price at that time. All these are normal except in this article. For the writer these are grand RSS plan for Malegaon bomb in 2007.The comments immediately appear about Orissa and Gujarat. I dont know anyone had seen the report of arrest fo two bishops and a nun two days backs after 16 years of the crime in a state like Kerala. The bishops appears to have sexually abused the girl and when things got bad killed her with the assistance of a fellow nun. The case was hushed up by Commies and Congress, the papers dont find any reason to suspect the higher up in the party or the pressures from Vatican to save the Catholic priests.rammohan
Why are you indulging in mindless gossip and that too of a dangerous kind? All that you are tryingto do is deny and camouflage.For what purpose?
Ram Mohan Ji what are you trying to prove here ? The bishops and nun episode has nothing to do with suspected RSS hand in Malegaon. Don't just try to play with Religion here. We have enough cheap, fanatic and extreme politicians to deal with.
It's turning out to be a shame for the whole society, that a majority is involved in such activities. This is nothing but religious fanatics and misuse of the sentiments of the public in the name of religion. Wake up people and through out any such anti-national elements.
When BJP rules there cannot be any justice for any cases of murder done by RSS. Mass murder was done in Gujurat by Modi (srong RSS Member) and In orrisa under the nose of Patnayak. RSS is a evil organisation and should be banned immediately. Let Justice prevail
the police have made no attempt to trace Joshi’s cell phone, track the number, or check his call details. Off the record, officials said that there had been pressure “right from the top” to go slow in the matter. IT IS BJP RULED STATE. WHEREVER THEY RULE, RSS IS GIVEN FREE LICENSE TO KILL. TO CURB RSS, BJP SHOULD BE RESTRAINED. Jai Hind