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Malegaon blasts were not the only terror strike Joshi orchestrated. He, says the charge-sheet by NIA, was involved in the planning and execution of blasts in Malegaon, Ajmer and Mecca Masjid. Vicky Nanjappa reports
The National Investigation Agency is all set to file its charge-sheet in connection with the murder of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh pracharak Sunil Joshi.
Joshi was one of the several right-wing activists who were accused of being involved in the serial blasts that rocked Malegaon, a textile town in Maharashtra dominated by members of the minority community, in September, 2006.
He was killed on December 29, 2007, presumably to prevent him from telling anyone the truth behind the blasts.
The charge-sheet claims that after having an argument with some of his associates, Joshi decided to come clean about the blasts and his role in the terror strike, a NIA official informs Rediff.com.
He wanted to enter public life, believes the NIA, with a clean slate.
The NIA has named Lokesh Sharma and Rajender Pehlwan as the main accused in the case. The two men, who were considered to be close to Joshi, had killed him and then tried to shift the blame to other outfits, says the charge-sheet.
Of the many people the NIA had questioned in connection with this murder, Jitender Sharma, an advocate who allegedly also played a role in the murder, confirmed the NIA’s suspicions about Sharma and Pehlwan.
Malegaon blasts were not the only terror strike Joshi orchestrated. He, says the charge-sheet, was involved in the planning and execution of blasts in Malegaon, Ajmer and Mecca Masjid.
For those who worked as his supervisors in terror operations, Joshi became the proverbial man who knew too much.
The RSS leader was also tired of being a mere foot soldier.
Joshi wanted to play a more pro-active role in society and leave terror activities behind. He had even contemplated surrendering to police, but his intentions scared those working with him.
They tried to talk Joshi out of it, but ended up making him more adamant about his decision to change his life, says the NIA.
His associates decided that they had no choice but to kill him, says the charge-sheet.
The investigation into Joshi’s murder has not been an easy one, a NIA official told Rediff.com, as a substantial amount of evidence had gone missing.
Initially, the agency was clueless about his associates’ involvement in the murder. In fact, in the first charge-sheet filed in connection with the case, the NIA had claimed that members of certain fundamental organisations had targeted Joshi to avenge the Malegaon blasts.
Later, says the official, the NIA was able to piece together disparate pieces of evidence and build a case against Sharma and Pehlwan.