Blast-accused Lieutenant colonel P.S. Purohit writes to Prime Minister Narendra Modi
Hopeful after the formation of the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre, Malegaon blast case accused Lt. Col. P.S. Purohit has now made a desperate “appeal” to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, claiming his innocence and craving to be set free. Lt. Col. Purohit was alleged to be part of the so-called Hindu terror network. Sources said the Modi government is likely to strictly follow the rule-book on the matter.
Lt. Col. Purohit, lodged in the Taloja Central Prison in Navi Mumbai, has pointed out that the case against him — now being handled by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) — is “yet to come up for hearing” and, therefore, far from reaching its conclusion. In his 18-page handwritten letter, Lt. Col. Purohit has accused the anti-terrorism squad (ATS) of the Maharashtra police of “ruthlessly implicating innocents” and of “creating terrorists out of innocent and patriotic sons of the soil for reasons best known to them and their policy-makers”. A copy of the letter is with this newspaper.
The Maharashtra police had accused Lt. Col. Purohit of being part of the extremist right-wing Abhinav Bharat group and being involved in an act of terror (in the Malegaon blast case of 2008).
Alleging brutal torture at the hands of the ATS around the time of his arrest in 2008, Lt. Col. Purohit, who was then on military intelligence duties, has written, “The worst-possible third-degree treatment, probably which not even an enemy nation would dish out to a prisoner of war, was given to me which definitely left me broken, both mentally and physically.” He has described the ATS case against him as “stage-managed and fabricated” and has claimed that it was deliberately given a political colour.
He has written, “At this stage, what I most urgently need and crave for, is liberty. I have my old mother, my wife and two minor sons back home to look after... This life of imprisonment... is no less than death to me.” He has sought “relief for the innocent” from the new government at the Centre.
The Army’s own court of inquiry, that concluded in 2010, had probed certain allegations against Lt. Col. Purohit, who is alleged to have been a member of an organisation “not recognised as part of the armed forces” contrary to provisions of Army rules. The officer had denied all allegations against him. He was also alleged to have illegally sold his 7.62 mm pistol to an arms dealer in Pune. He was also alleged to have “initiated action” for procurement of a bulletproof jacket and debugging equipment without due authority. The order of the Army court of inquiry had stated that it would “bring out extent to which the superiors, colleagues and subordinates were aware of the illegal activity of Lt. Col. Purohit and any deliberate failure to take cognisance” of these activities. The court of inquiry was also mandated to probe any “lapses in command, control and supervision which enabled Lt. Col. Purohit to become involved in undesirable activities”. It is unclear as to what conclusions were arrived at by it.