A day after RTI activist Amit Jethwa was shot dead outside the Gujarat high court in Ahmedabad’s Gir forest, his father alleged that a BJP MP was behind the murder of his son who he said had recently filed a PIL concerning illegal mining in and around the Gir forests.
Bhikubhai Jethwa, Amit’s father said, “I strongly suspect that BJP MP Dinu Solanki is behind my son’s murder. In past, he had threatened Amit many times.” Amit Jethwa was killed by two unidentified motor cycle-borne assailants who fled after shooting him dead.
Amit had recently filed a PIL in the Gujarat high court against illegal mining in Gir forest. Following his PIL, the authorities had cracked down on the illegal mining activities in Gir forest and other areas on the Saurashtra coast. Meanwhile, the police are yet to get any substantial lead into the murder, which has shocked the activists and civil society in the state.
The two men who shot Jethwa from a close range when he was coming out of his lawyer’s office near the Gujarat high court on Tuesday night have not been identified yet, the police said. A country-made gun and two 12-bore cartridges found at the crime scene have been sent to the forensic lab for testing. According to the police, the registration number of the motorcycle left behind by the assailants is fake. H.M. Kundaliya, inspector at Sola police station where the complaint has been lodged, said investigation is underway to nab the culprits. “Witnesses are being quizzed along with the family members of the deceased to get some lead in the case,” said the inspector.
Gujarat leader of opposition, Shaktisinh Gohil, demanded a detailed and comprehensive probe against BJP MP Dinu Solanki, suspect in the murder.