Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday declared that his party would not rest until both the assailants and the conspirators who killed the party’s division chief in Thane , Pradeep Purnekar, were brought to justice.
The murder has triggered a massive political row in Maharashtra , with the Purnekar family and the Shiv Sena (UBT) alleging that former Thane mayor Meenakshi Shinde and her husband, Rajendra Shinde, both associated with the Shiv Sena, were involved in the murder. “Let the police investigate and find out who is guilty. I will answer then. Pradeep Purnekar’s former aide, Prakash alias Papya Shinde, who took him to hospital after the attack, has been arrested by the police.
I don’t want to get into petty politics,” she said. “We will wait to see see what police finds in probe,” said Dighe.
Police suspect Papya, who ended his association with Purnekar six months ago, unexpectedly turned up at his office a day before the shooting, allegedly to conduct a recce. Meenakshi Shinde on Wednesday said she didn’t want to respond to the allegations. On Wednesday, Kedar Dighe said the police were investigating the murder and would probe the role of Meenakshi Shinde and her husband.
Thackeray, who reached out to the Purnekar family in Thane following the party leader’s murder, also assured the grieving family of his full support. “I came here to console the family, give them courage, and reassure them that we stand firmly with them in this hour of crisis. “How long will this continue? We will always stand up against them and stay firmly behind Pradeep Purnekar’s family.”
We will not rest until the killers and masterminds behind the murder are punished,” Thackeray said after meeting Pradeep’s wife, Vijeta, and son, Ram. “Pressuring local leaders, threatening them, and this murder are part of an ongoing campaign of oppression in Thane,” a Sena (UBT) leader quoted Thackeray as telling party workers.
