The special court had in December 2013 acquitted all six accused in the blast that had rocked Margao on Diwali eve, killing two perpetrators. All the accused, associated with the right wing Hindu outfit Sanatan Sanstha, were acquitted for lack of evidence against them. The incident had occurred during the then Congress led regime.
Addressing the media, Congress General Secretary Sunil Kawthankar alleged that the right wing Hindu outfits are extremists trying to create a communal divide in the State.
“We demand that the government should appoint a judicial commission to inquire into the Margao bomb blast case. Probe needs to be held to reveal the masterminds and those shielding the culprits,” Kawthankar said, adding “some Hindu organizations through controversial remarks are trying to disturb the communal harmony of this peaceful State.”
The Congress spokesman also alleged that several BJP leaders were involved in shielding the culprits and hence the investigation was delayed thereby leading to lack of evidence against the culprits.
The two accused – Malgonda Patil and Yogesh Naik – who were ferrying the explosives to a crowded spot in Margao town where the low intensity blast occurred on October 16, 2009, were killed in the explosion. Following the blast, the other six accused — Vinay Talekar, Dhananjay Ashtekar, Prashant Ashtekar, Vinayak Patil, Prashant Juvekar and Dilip Mazgaonkar — were arrested by Goa crime branch.
Later, the investigation was transferred from Crime Branch to the National Investigation Agency (NIA), which had filed the indictment in the case on May 17, 2010.
