Maharashtra: police files murder charge in journalist's death case

A case of murder was registered on Wednesday against a land dealer, said to be a supporter of an ambitious but controversial refinery project in Konkan, for allegedly mowing down a local journalist with his car in Maharashtra's Ratnagiri district.

Shashikant Warishe, who wrote for Marathi newspapers, died at a hospital in Kolhapur on Tuesday after an SUV allegedly driven by Pandharinath Amberkar hit his two-wheeler at a petrol pump in Rajapur area on Monday.

Several media organisations demanded probe into Warishe's death, claiming that he had written against Amberkar who supported the proposed Ratnagiri Refinery and Petrochemical project. The multi-billion dollar project had faced stiff opposition from sections of local population.

Amberkar (42) was arrested on Tuesday under section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of the Indian Penal Code. Police have now also added section 302 (murder) to the FIR, an official said.

A local court has remanded him in police custody till February 13.

Police are investigating the exact motive behind the alleged murder, the official added.

In a statement issued on Wednesday evening, the Mumbai Press Club said the "brutal, public murder" brought to light the "plummeting standards of civil liberties and free speech and brazen attempt by both state and non-state players to crush any media reporting that proves to be inconvenient." Warishe had written a series of reports highlighting "the local resistance to a petroleum refinery in Barsu" and recently pointed out some banners where Amberkar's picture featured along with those of Chief Minister and Prime Minister, the statement said.

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"Amberkar, a leader of the local land mafia, was known to threaten and harass those who resisted any land acquisition on behalf of the upcoming refinery," the Mumbai Press Club alleged, demanding strict action by the state government in the case.

Earlier, members of the Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Patrakar Parishad, a federation of Marathi journalists, had met Maharashtra Home Minister Devendra Fadnavis and sought a probe into Warishe’s death.

The Ratnagiri Refinery and Petrochemical project, earlier proposed to be built at Nanar village in Ratnagiri district in coastal Konkan, was scrapped before the 2019 polls at the instance of the Shiv Sena, the then alliance partner of the ruling BJP.

The Union government had last year hinted at its revival at another location.

The People's Union For Civil Liberties (PUCL), a human rights organization, also demanded "totally independent" and "free of any influence" probe and compensation for the slain journalist's family.

It also demanded that the government should ensure safety of Warishe's family as well as witnesses in the case.