Two detained in Goa for Dabholkar murder

Pune Crime Branch has taken into custody two persons from Goa for questioning in connection with the murder of noted rationalist Narendra Dabholkar.

The duo, hiding at a feast venue at Old Goa near Panaji, was detained on December 3, Goa Deputy Inspector-General of Police O.P. Mishra said on Saturday.

The operation to track down the suspects, said to be sharp shooters hailing from Mumbai whose names were not revealed, was jointly conducted by Pune and Goa police, he said.

The detention was made at a village housing cluster of churches, where the annual feast of St. Francis Xavier is going on. The duo was picked up from a stall, Mr. Mishra said.

Both were taken immediately to Pune, where the anti-superstition activist was gunned down by unidentified assailants on August 20.

Pune police have failed to achieve a breakthrough in the case so far and Dabholkar’s family is pushing for a CBI inquiry.