Malegaon 2008 blast suspects’ kin demand probe

Mumbai, Jan 3 (IANS) The families of the Malegaon 2008 blasts 'missing' suspects -- Ramchandra Kalsangra and Sandeep Dange - on Tuesday sought a probe into a police officer's claims that they died while in custody of Maharashtra's Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS).

Kalsangra and Dange, both residents of Indore in Madhya Pradesh, were accused of planting a bomb which went off on September 29, 2008 in what is known as Malegaon II terror strike, killing at least six and injuring over 100 others in the Muslim-dominated town in Nashik.

Recently, a Solapur-based suspended police official, Mehboob Mujawar, has claimed the two suspects had been allegedly killed while in ATS custody.

Mujawar has contended that on the night of the 26/11 terror attack in Mumbai, ATS officers allegedly shot Kalsangra and Dange at its Kalachowkie office here, took their bodies to the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus and passed them off as victims of that night's terror strike.

Addressing mediapersons here, Kalsangra's wife Laxmibai said she had urged Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to order a thorough probe into the incident in view of the fresh developments in the case.

"I am suffering the pain of my husband's disappearance since nearly 10 years. The revelations by the police official Mujawar are shocking. We are held at ransom due to some political conspiracy and being used for dirty vote bank politics," said Laxmibai, who was accompanied by her son Devavrat, brother-in-law Shivnarayan Kalsangra and lawyer Prashant Maggu.

In Indore, Dange's father, retired professor V.K. Dange, also demanded an enquiry into the allegations as he was his only son and wanted to know the real status of his well-being.

Laxmibai added that she would soon submit a memorandum to Fadnavis to know the status of her husband's whereabouts, identify the ATS officials responsible for the alleged custodial killings and punishing them.