By Special Correspondent, TwoCircles.net,
Even at a time when the strong evidence exists and the custodial interrogation of Col. Shrikant Purohit is pending, National Investigation Agency (NIA) has declared he is not involved in Samjhauta blast case.
“There is no proof against him in Samjhauta blast case. He was never an accused. I wonder why his name is being linked to Samjhauta blast case,” NIA Director General Sharad Kumar said on Tuesday.
When this news was taken over by all media, the central government was quick to shrug its shoulder and said it is not pressurizing NIA.
However, one would wonder why NIA is in a hurry to absolve Purohit from Samjhauta case although NIA has not conducted Purohit’s custodial interrogation and that there are strong evidences against him implicating in Malegaon, Ajmer and Samjhauta blasts cases.
If we scrutinize the charge sheet submitted by Maharashtra ATS in Malegaon 2008 blasts case, we find statements of many witnesses establishing guilt of Purohit and others that they were conspiring to explode bombs at many places in India and were hell bent to pursue agenda of creation of Hindu Rashtra. The names of witnesses are withheld as per sections of MCOC Act.
In the charge sheet, Witness no. 55 (Vol. III-A, Page 281 to 286, Compilation Page No. 183 to 188) a friend of Purohit stated – In the year 2007 he had visited the house of Purohit at Nasik, and Purohit had shown him a green colour sack (bag) containing RDX kept in his wooden cupboard. And at that time Purohit had told him that some part of the RDX was given to Bhagwan to cause a blast in Samjhauta Express. And that the said Bhagwan, presently has become a Sadhu by renouncing the world (referring to the blast which had occurred in Samjhauta Express train running from Delhi to Wagha border at LOC).
This statement of witness clearly implicates Purohit in Samjhauta Express blast occurred on February 18, 2007 killing 68 people and causing injuries to 12 train passengers including women and children travelling in the train.
This was not a simple statement but it was recorded by ATS under section 164 of Criminal Code before Metropolitan Magistrate. The statement of a witness u/s 164 is considered as a strong piece of evidence and the witness cannot change this statement even during trial. There are many Supreme Court judgments where the culprits are sentenced only on the basis of such 164 statement of a witness.
In addition to this another witness number 51 (Vol. III-A, Page 251 to 258, Compilation Page No. 125 to 132), a member of Abhinav Bharat organization stated – In one of the meeting held in Faridabad Purohit was talking on phone with somebody and thereafter he told another accused Sudhakar Dhar Dwivedi @ Swami Dayanand Pandey that their men were successful in accomplishing the mission at Ajmer (referring to the Ajmer blast).
This statement of witness links Purohit to Ajmer Dargah blasts that had taken place on October 11, 2007 leaving 3 dead and many injured.
Moreover, NIA’s plea for custody of the three main accused in the Malegaon blasts viz. Lt Col Shrikant Prasad Purohit, Sudhakar Udaybhan Dwivedi alias Dayanand Pandey and Major (retd) Ramesh Upadhyaya is pending before Supreme Court since November 2011.
Therefore, in the presence of such a strong statement of witness and pending custodial interrogation of Purohit, NIA’s clean chit to Purohit in Samjhauta blast case is highly deplorable.