Maharashtra will not transfer Pansare murder probe to CBI

The government’s submission came after his family expressed apprehension over a likely transfer of probe

The state government on Thursday told the Bombay high court that its own Special Investigations Team will continue probing the murder of rationalist Govind Pansare and the probe will not be transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

The government’s submission came after Pansare’s kin expressed apprehension over a likely transfer of probe. The family’s lawyer, advocate Abhay Nevagi, told the high court that the chief minister’s office had issued a letter to the SIT saying it would allow for the transfer of probe to the CBI.

The court, however, said it won’t “allow for any change of guard”, and the CMO was “no one to allow the transfer”, when the court was monitoring the case.

A bench of justice SC Dharmadhikari and justice Shalini Phansalkar-Joshi also granted both the CBI and the state CID eight weeks to get the ballistics report and complete all paperwork in the Dabholkar and Pansare murders respectively.