Govind Pansare murder case
Sameer Gaikwad, a prominent suspect in the 2015 assassination of renowned activist and Communist Party of India (CPI) leader Govind Pansare, reportedly died from suspected cardiac arrest on Tuesday morning in Maharashtra’s Sangli district, according to police sources. At 43 years old, Gaikwad had been released on bail since 2017 in connection with the case.
Govind Pansare, aged 81 at the time of his death, was shot by two unidentified gunmen close to his home in Sagar Mal, Kolhapur, while returning from a morning walk with his wife, Uma, on February 16, 2015. Pansare suffered three gunshot wounds, and Uma was injured by two bullets that struck her head, resulting in a skull fracture. He was transported to Breach Candy Hospital in Mumbai but succumbed to his injuries on February 20, 2015. Uma was able to return home a few weeks later.
According to a senior police official, “Gaikwad died of a suspected cardiac arrest on Tuesday morning. He had been on bail since 2017 and had a discharge application pending in court.” The investigation into the murder initially fell under the jurisdiction of the Rajarampuri police station in Kolhapur but was later handed over to a Special Investigation Team (SIT) led by the additional director general of the Maharashtra Criminal Investigation Department (CID).
Throughout the investigation, 12 individuals were identified as suspects, with law enforcement apprehending 10 of them. In addition to Gaikwad, others arrested included Virendrasinh Tawade, Amol Kale, Vasudev Suryavanshi, Bharat Kurne, Amit Degwekar, Sharad Kalaskar, Sachin Andure, Amit Baddi, and Ganesh Miskin. However, Vinay Pawar and Sarang Akolkar, also linked to the case, have not been caught and are currently absconding. All suspects are alleged to have ties to the Sanatan Sanstha organization.
The first chargesheet for the case was submitted in December 2015, followed by four supplementary chargesheets against the remaining suspects. In January 2023, a Kolhapur court officially framed charges against 10 of the accused, marking the start of the trial process. All accused individuals have pleaded not guilty to the charges.
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