Goa giving financial support to "extremist" Sanatan, says AAP

Goa unit of Aam Aadmi Party on Thursday alleged that the state government was providing financial support to the "extremist and dubious" organisation Sanatan Sanstha, by giving advertisements to its mouthpiece.

The Sanatan Sanstha has come under the scanner after its activist Samir Gaikwad was arrested in connection with the murder of CPI leader and rationalist Govind Pansare.

"It is shocking to note that Goa government is officially handing over public money to such a radical organisation through its mouthpiece 'Sanathan Prabhat'," Valmiki Naik, ad-hoc secretary of AAP in Goa said.

"AAP strongly condemns this financial support given to this extremist organisation under the guise of newspaper advertisements," he added.

The government should immediately stop releasing a single rupee of public money to such dubious organisations, and also put an immediate ban on its mouthpiece the Sanathan Prabhat, while beginning active monitoring of all activities of the Sanstha, Naik said.

"AAP Goa also demands that the Home Ministry should obtain a copy of the 2011 dossier of the Maharasthra Government, and completes a time-bound NIA-assisted probe into the organisation under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act and submit a fresh request to the Centre to ban the Sanathan Sanstha, without leaving any loopholes in its report for the BJP-led central government to deny the request," he said.

The Maharashtra Home Ministry had, in 2011 sent a detailed report to the Central government and had requested it to ban the Sanatan Sanstha, though the government did not act upon it, former Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan had recently said.

Naik further said, "It is with dismay that AAP Goa notes the active support given by the Goa government to Sanatan Sanstha. While individual support by Goa ministers such as Sudin Dhavalikar and Deepak Dhavalikar is deplorable, but it is not entirely surprising due to their known narrow-minded and regressive opinions on various issues."

The AAP leader also alleged that Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar remains oblivious, or pretends to be oblivious, of simple facts when conveniently stating that an organisation cannot be banned due to the actions of one person, in reference to the recent arrest of Samir Gaikwad.