Date: June 18th 2008

Date: 18.6.08

ATS nabs 2 more for Thane blasts

TN Raghunatha | Mumbai

Maharashtra Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) sleuths on Tuesday arrested two more hard-core activists of Sanatan Sanstha and Hindu Jan Jagruti Samiti in connection with the June 4 explosion at Thane's Gadkari Rangyatan, taking the total number of arrests to four.
Sleuths booked Ramesh Hanumant Gadkari (50) and Mangesh Dinakar Nikam (34) for their alleged involvement in Thane's blast and two other earlier incidents. The ATS officials picked up Vikram Vinay Bhave and Santosh Angre, both aged 26 years, from Sanatan Sanstha's Panvel ashram.

Bhave and Angre have been charged with having colluded with Gadkari and Nikam in executing the blast in the parking lot of "Gadkari Rangayatan", in which seven persons were injured. Among other things, the low-intensity bomb used in Thane blast - composed of ammonium nitrate and gelatin sticks - was assembled at Bhave's residence.

Nikam assembled the bombs used in Thane blast and two incidents - one of which exploded on February 20 this year at a Panvel cinema hall Ashutosh Gowariker's film, Jodha Akbar, and the one which was recovered and defused at a Vashi drama theatre on May 31, while Gadkari transported the explosives and planted them at the three locations.

In a related development, the Panvel-based Sanatan Sanstha (SS) and the Hindu Janjagruti Samiti (HJS) have distanced themselves from the three incidents and disowned Gadkari and Nikam.

In a statement issued here, Sanstha's Mumbai convenor Abhay Varatk denied either his organization or HJS had anything to do with the three incidents. "We are not involved in any anti-social activities. The Sansta and HJS believe in scientific spirituality. We are committed to evolving solutions to problems through dialogues, not acts of terrorism."

"We have condemned the Thane blast and two other incidents. We are fully cooperating with the ATS in their investigations," Vartak said.

Vartak's statement should be seen in the light of an admission made by Gadkari and Nikam to the police that they had chosen to register their protest against the producers of Marathi play "Amhi Pachpute" and Ashutosh Gowariker's film, Jodha Akbar, by engineering incidents at Thane, Vashi and Panvel, as they had felt that the Hindu gods and goddesses had been projected as "caricatures" in both the play and film.

However, what has really complicated the matters for the two right wing organizations is the fact that both Gadkari and Nikam have told the police they were active members of SS and HJS and the fact that Gadkari had been living at the SS ashram at Panvel for five years with his family; while his wife works in the publicity and advertising department of a newspaper run by SS in the city.