'We want answers, but we'll get them in a non-violent way'

Dr Narendra Dabholkar

It has now been five years since anti-superstition crusader Dr Narendra Dabholkar was gunned down by two suspicious shooters, whose identity is still a matter of speculation. To mark his death and the slow progress being made in the case, the kin of Dabholkar, CPI politician Govind Pansare, scholar MM Kalburgi, both of whom were killed in 2015, and journalist-activist Gauri Lankesh, who was murdered in 2017, will come together on stage for the 'Jawab Do' agitation in Pune's Rashtriya Seva Dal auditorium.

Chairing the event will be Mahatma Gandhi's great grandson, Tushar Gandhi. Speaking to mid-day, he said, "It is sad and dangerous for our society to see rational thinkers being silenced through violence. Apparently, the administration is also least keen on doing anything. It is hard to digest that such killers have not been traced even in such a technologically-advanced world."

'Our cops have failed'
Dr Hamid Dabholkar, the slain rationalist's son, questioned, "Why is the Maharashtra police unable to trace the culprits at the grass root level? The Karnataka police have nailed those behind Gauri Lankesh's murder, but our cops have failed."

"These people thought that by killing Dr. Dabholkar, his work and ideology will also die, but it is not so. We will continue to work for the society and raise our issues through a non-violent path, unlike the Sanatan Sanstha, that has taken up weapons. We're waiting to see when the government will take stringent action against the right-wing outfits that didn't stop with the killing of Dr. Dabholkar. We want answers. But we will get them in a non-violent way," he added.

Pansare's daughter-in-law, Megha Pansare said, "Under the garb of spirituality, these Sansthas are gathering money and using it for killing people who are rational thinkers. Now, they're creating terror in the society because they've realised that they cannot kill ideology by merely killing people." Kalburgi's son Shreevijay said, "The four people who have been assassinated were progressive and rational-thinking. Fundamentalist people are against such an ideology and want to create terror. They are terrorists."

Youths being targeted
Gauri Lankesh's sister Kavita said, "Had the police nailed and cracked the murders of Dr Dabholkar and Pansare, my sister would have been safe today. Unfortunately, my sister's death has sparked the investigation of the Maharashtra police. In my sister's case, the person who pulled the trigger was a young man, which means such outfits are targeting young blood and polluting their brains. These youths are mere pawns. The real culprits need to be arrested. The police must investigate the case independently."

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