RSS leader linked to Ajmer shrine blast | Latest News Delhi - Hindustan Times
close_game
close_game

RSS leader linked to Ajmer shrine blast

By, Ajmer/jaipur/new Delhi
Oct 24, 2010 02:46 AM IST

Senior RSS leader Indresh Kumar took part in a secret meeting of right-wing fundamentalists in October 2005 in Jaipur at which plans to carry out bomb blasts at the Ajmer dargah, Hyderabad’s Mecca Masjid and Malegaon were chalked out. HT reports. How the plot unfolded

Senior Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) leader Indresh Kumar took part in a secret meeting of right-wing fundamentalists in October 2005 in Jaipur at which plans to carry out bomb blasts at the Ajmer dargah, Hyderabad’s Mecca Masjid and Malegaon were chalked out, the Rajasthan police’s anti-terrorist squad (ATS) has said in its Ajmer blast chargesheet.

HT Image
HT Image

The RSS and the BJP called the chargesheet a “Congress-inspired” bid to revive the issue of “saffron terror” during the ongoing Bihar polls and blunt attacks on the UPA government ahead of the winter session of Parliament next month. Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot responded that the RSS should “accept the truth”.

Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now.

The blast at the dargah of Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti on October 11, 2007 had killed three persons and injured more than a dozen.

Indresh Kumar (62), who was based in Rajasthan from 2001 to 2004, has also been involved with the work of the Rashtriya Muslim Manch, an RSS affiliate that calls itself a “nationalist organisation” of Muslims.

In its 806-page chargesheet filed in the court of the additional chief judicial magistrate in Ajmer on Friday, the ATS has said that Swami Aseemanand, based in Dangs district of Gujarat, and Sunil Joshi, who was murdered in 2007, were the brains behind the Ajmer blast, which was allegedly carried out to avenge attacks on Hindu religious places.

However, neither Indresh nor Aseemanand are named among the accused in the case.

Aseemanand and Joshi allegedly held a secret meeting in Jaipur on October 31, 2005 with five others, including Indresh and Sadhvi Pragya Thakur, an accused in the Malegaon blast case.

The sadhvi and 10 others are accused of plotting and carrying out blasts in Malegaon, Maharashtra on September 29, 2008 in which six persons were killed.

The responsibility for carrying out the blasts at the Ajmer shrine, the Mecca Masjid and Malegaon was fixed at the meeting, ATS has stated in the chargesheet.

At the meeting, Indresh suggested they work in tandem with other religious organisations so that no one would suspect anything and they could successfully carry out the attacks, the chargesheet says.

Indresh rubbished the chargesheet. “Why was I not made an accused in the case when the ATS mentions my role in it?” he asked. “This hints at a political conspiracy backed by the Congress government.”

Congress spokesperson Manish Tiwari said the chargesheet was a manifestation of the RSS’ attempts at “trying to undermine and upset the pluralistic ethos of India and disturb communal amity”.

“His (Indresh’s) name has only been mentioned in the document in connection with holding a meeting,” RSS spokesperson Ram Madhav said. “It is far from the truth. It will be challenged in court.”

Devendra Gupta, Lokesh Sharma, Chandrashekhar Leve, Sandeep Dange and Ramji Kalsangra are the five main accused in the blast case. Devendra, Lokesh and Leve are lodged in a Hyderabad jail. Dange and Kalsangra are still at large.

The blast at the Dargah of Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti took place in October 2007 in which one person was killed.

Who is Indresh Kumar?
Was a member of the All India Executive of the RSS in 2007. From 2002-04, he was based in Jaipur. Later he shifted to Varanasi

Where the meeting was held?
The meeting was held in Room No 26 of the guest house of the Gujarati Samaj near MI Road on October 31, 2005

Who all were present?
Those present at the meeting were Indresh Kumar, Pragya Thakur, Sunil Joshi, Ramji Kalsangra, Devendra Gupta, Lokesh Gupta and Sandeep Dange

What responsibility was given to whom?
-Sunil Joshi was to carry out bomb blasts
-Lokesh Sharma and Ramji Kalsangra were to procure weapons and explosives and do recce of possible locations
-Devendra Gupta was tasked with procuring mobiles and SIM cards with fake identity cards
-Sandeep Dange and Sunil Joshi were to collect funds

Unveiling 'Elections 2024: The Big Picture', a fresh segment in HT's talk show 'The Interview with Kumkum Chadha', where leaders across the political spectrum discuss the upcoming general elections. Watch now!
SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Share this article
SHARE
Story Saved
Live Score
OPEN APP
Saved Articles
Following
My Reads
Sign out
New Delhi 0C
Friday, March 29, 2024
Start 14 Days Free Trial Subscribe Now
Follow Us On