‘You are Deserving of Death Penalty in the Hindu Rashtra & This Penalty will Be Executed Soon’: Extremist Outfit Threatened former Journo Ashish Khetan allegedly on May 11 (and earlier in July 2016 after which the former journo moved the Supreme Court on May 24 seeking directions from the highest court in the land to all law enforcement agencies to protect free thinkers, rationalists and journalistsAam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Ashish Khetan has requested the Supreme Court for protection, alleging that he has been receiving threats from right wing organisations. In his petition, Mr Khetan has alleged that there is a threat to his life from groups like Abhinav Bharat, Sanatan Sanstha and Hindu Jan Jagran Samiti. The case which was listed today will now be heard after the court re-opens on June 10.
Asking for a CBI investigation, Mr Khetan has alleged that he has received letters threatening that he will be killed. He said he had also complained to the Delhi Police but no action was taken.His petition also urges the top court to issue directions to the police on protecting journalists, activists and others who he says have faced similar threats.
Mr Khetan had written to Home Minister Rajnath Singh earlier this month asking for action and Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had also tweeted on it.
Extremely shocking. Ashish Khaitan receives death threat. Hope Rajnath Singh ji will take action. https://t.co/FPra2jo31y
Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) May 13, 2017
In his letter to the Home Minister, Mr Khetan flagged a threat letter that he said he had received on May 9. He has described it as a "chilling reminder of the growing confidence of anti-national forces."
Mr Khetan, a former journalist, is the vice-chairman of the Delhi Dialogue Commission, which was set up by the AAP government to follow up on the implementation of various poll promises made by the party for the 2015 Delhi election. In 2014, he contested and lost the 2014 Lok Sabha election from the New Delhi constituency.
The Sanatan Sanstha has rubbished Khetan’s claim in his petition. (Ashish Khetan’s statement is a conspiracy to defame Sanatan : Adv. Punalekar)
On May 13 Sabrangindia had reported on the threats received by Khetan
‘You are Deserving of Death Penalty in the Hindu Rashtra & This Penalty will Be Executed Soon’: Extremist Outfit Threatens former Journo Ashish Khetan. Khetan, who received this threat from an outfit, in language strikingly similar to threats by the Sanathan Sanstha(SS) received by rationalists and free thinkers, Narayan Daboklar and Govind Pansare has written to Home Minister, Rajnath Singh urging that the GOI take this and other threats to journalists and free thinkers seriously
Last July (2016) was the first time that Ashish Khetan received such a threat when he had in a formal complaint to the Commissioner of Police solicited action to which, unfortunately there was no response. He proceeded with his public responsibilities for the Aam Admi Party (AAP).
Yesterday, the letter dated May 11, 2017 was delivered and the threat was direct and chilling.” You are deserving of Death Penalty in the Hindu Rashtra’ and in case the message was not clear, the four five line missive “This job, with Ishwar (God’s) blessing will be carried out soon.” The missive refers to the CBI’s probe, by officer Nandkumar Nayar of the SS, that included raids of their offices and even arrests of their volunteers, Virendra Singh Tawde.
Khetan who has received this direct threat is more, much more than an AAP politician, however. In his investigative work as a journalist for Tehelka, Headlines Today and Gulail he has exposed such forces with documentary evidence. In June 2016, he had in a series of social media posts tweeted on the failure of investigative agencies under the Modi regime to nab the culprits behind the murders of Narayan Dabholkar and Govind Pansare. Ashish Khetan had posted messages on social media and mentioned that Sanatan Sanstha and Hindu Janjagruti Samiti had perpetrated the murder of Dabholkar. Khetan added that investigation agencies have identified the culprits responsible for Dabholkar’s murder. He had named four members of the Sanatan Sanstha — Sarang Akolkar, Rudra Patil, Jaiprakash Hegde and Praveen Limkar — behind the murder. All four have been absconding since 2008.
The anonymous letter by this extremist outfit proudly identifying itself as part of the Hindu Rashtra regime and vision was received in Khetan’s office(1233/DDC on 11/5/2017). On the envelope there is a reference to the Hindu calendar, “Jayatu Jayatu Hindu Rashtram.”