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Shashi Tharoor backs Vijay Wadettiwar over Hemant Karkare remark, attacks Ujjwal Nikam
Shashi Tharoor added that the nation has the right to know what happened.
Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Monday backed his party colleague, Vijay Wadettiwar, over the latter's claim that former Maharashtra ATS chief Hemant Karkare had been murdered by a police official, saying the leader's grave allegation must be investigated.
Shashi Tharoor said that when the Leader of Opposition (LoP) levels allegations which had been in the public domain, investigation should be conducted.
"The matter is extremely serious. Our concern is that when the LoP points to something that is an allegation that has been in the public domain for some time and which featured in a book by the former IG of police, SM Mushrif, who said that the bullets found in Karkare's body could not have been fired by Ajmal Kasab and that it could have been fired by a police revolver," Shashi Tharoor said.
Tharoor added that the nation has the right to know what happened.
Shashi Tharoor also attacked BJP candidate Ujjwal Nikam, who was the public prosecutor in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, for claiming that Ajmal Amir Kasab was served biryani in jail.
"We already knew that he (Ujjwal Nikam) had propagated this unjustified myth that the Pakistani terrorist was served Biryani in prison...that is something that shows him in a very poor light. If, indeed, he has already revealed his political bias in that moment, then there is every reason to worry whether his political bias had influenced any other of his stands. We are not saying that the allegation is true. We are saying it should be investigated," he added.
Hemant Karkare, an ace officer in Maharashtra, was killed in action while fighting terrorists in Mumbai in 2008.
Ajmal Kasab was the only terrorist who was captured alive. He was hanged in Pune in 2012.
Vijay Wadettiwar, the Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra assembly, on Sunday, claimed Karkare was killed by a police official close to Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.
Nikam called the Congress leader's remark as baseless.
"What allegations are you making? What will Pakistan say? Pakistan has never denied this. because we produced judicial proof. But our man is doing politics. You just want to do propaganda - that too Goebbels' propaganda. This doesn't defame Nikam. It defames you," he said.
Also read: 'Kasab didn't kill Hemant Karkare; Ujjwal Nikam traitor': Congress leader sparks row
Wadettiwar, clarifying the remark, said these were not his words. He said former IGP SM Mushrif made the allegation in his book.
"Those are not my words, I just said what was written in the book by SM Mushrif. All information was there about the bullet by which Hemant Karkare was shot, it was not the bullet of terrorists," he said.
With inputs from ANI
