Shrikant Pangarkar, accused in the murder of senior journalist Gauri Lankesh in 2017, won the Jalna Municipal Corporation elections in Maharashtra as an independent candidate and celebrated the victory with his supporters. Jalna is a city in the Marathwada region of Maharashtra.
Srikanth contested from Ward 13, where his rivals included candidates from BJP and other parties. He won by a margin of 2,621 votes. Eknath Shinde led Shiv Sena did not field any candidate from this ward.
When was Gauri Lankesh murdered?
Srikant had joined Shiv Sena for some time before the assembly elections to be held in November 2024. However, after severe criticism, the then Chief Minister Eknath Shinde stopped his membership in the party. Let us tell you that Gauri was murdered on September 5, 2017 by a group of 18 Hindutva supporters under the leadership of Amol Kale.
Who were the accused?
She (Gauri Lankeshan) was shot outside her house in Rajarajeshwari Nagar, Bengaluru. Srikant was charged in 2021 along with Amol (main accused), Amit Degvekar, Sujit Kumar, Ganesh Miskin, Amith Badd, Bharat Kurane, Suresh HL, Rajesh Bangera, Sudhanva Gondalekar, Sharad Kalaskar, Mohan Nayak, Vasudev Suryavanshi, Manohar Advay, Naveen Kumar and Rushikesh Deodikar. Former Jalna Municipal Council member (2001-06) of undivided Shiv Sena, Shrikant did not get the party ticket in 2011, after which he joined the right-wing Hindu Janajagruti Samiti.
When did Srikant get bail?
In August 2018, the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) arrested Srikant after it seized country-made bombs and weapons from several locations across the state. A case was registered against him under the Explosives Act, Explosive Substances Act and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). Karnataka High Court granted him bail on September 4, 2024 in the Gauri Lankesh murder case.
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