Goon who shot at RTI activist held in Mumbai

Ahmedabad Mirror

After recovering a revolver from Shailesh Pandya, the Mumbai Crime Branch booked the 36-year-old from Patan under the Arms Act. He will be produced before a magistrate in Mumbai on Wednesday.


The person who  shot dead prominent RTI activist Amit Jethava outside Gujarat High Court in July this year, was arrested in Mumbai on Tuesday. Shailesh Nanalal Pandya alias Sanjay Rabari was arrested by the Kurla unit of Mumbai Crime Branch.

They recovered a revolver from his possession. The 36-year-old accused hails from Patan. 

The Mumbai Crime Branch has booked Pandya under the Arms Act and will produce him in a local court on Wednesday. He will be subsequently handed over to the Gujarat police, Mumbai’s Additional Police Commissioner Deven Bharti said.

According to police, Inspector Agarwal and API Ghuge of the Kurla crime unit rounded up Pandya on a tip-off at Kapadia Nagar Society in Kurla West on Tuesday. During preliminary investigation, Pandya is alleged to have claimed that he shot dead Jethava on the directions of some person. Mumbai police officials, however, are not ready to divulge more details.

green crusader’s death

Jethava, a known RTI activist and a ‘green crusader’ was spearheading a campaign against alleged illegal mining in the Gir Sanctuary of Saurashtra, which was allegedly supported by some politicians. Jethava had filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in the Gujarat High Court in May this year alleging that mining activities were being carried out in Una and Kodinar of Saurashtra allegedly by Junagadh BJP MP Solanki and his relatives.

On August 20, two motorcycle-borne persons killed Jethava near Satyamev Complex opposite Gujarat High Court at 8.45 pm. 


Since then constable Bahadursinh Wader, Shiva Pachan alias Shiva Solanki and Sanjay Chauhan have been arrested. Earlier, on September 7, Shiva Solanki, a nephew of Junagadh BJP MP Dinubhai Boghabhai Solanki was arrested by the Ahmedabad Crime Branch for his alleged role in the murder.

Another shooter held

Pandya’s name as the shooter had cropped up during interrogation. Uday Thakor, who was with Pandya when the latter shot dead the RTI activist, was caught at Geeta Mandir on October 2.

As per the Ahmedabad Crime Branch, the conspiracy to kill Jethava was hatched at Shivalaya Complex office of Shiva alias Pratap Solanki in the presence Wader, a former constable. According to cops, Pratap, a former vice-president of Kodinar panchayat, and the constable are childhood friends. 

Crime Branch inspector S M Choudhary said Solanki ‘hired’ Wader to find a shooter, and he was ready to spend any amount of money required to eliminate Jethava. He said Jethava was a thorn in the flesh for the Solankis owing to his opposition to ‘illegal’ mining in which the Solankis are alleged to have a major stake.

Choudhary said Solanki had given Pandya Rs 11 lakh to kill Jethava and the police were trying to trace the source of the money.  Pandya, a former teacher, also faces an attempt to murder case in Gujarat, police added.

Another challenge before the sleuths is to determine the motive and the political pressure behind the killing of the RTI activist. The police have not recorded Dinu Solanki’s statement till now.

RTI activist’s killer nabbed from Mumbai

The Times of India

Martyr to transparency

Ahmedabad: Mumbai crime branch officials nabbed Sailesh Pandya, the man who had shot RTI and environment activist, Amit Jethava. Pandya was absconding since Jethava’s murder on July 20. He was nabbed on Tuesday on the basis of a tip-off received by Mumbai cops about a gang of criminals operating in the area. The cops have also seized a revolver from Pandya. Police sources say that it is the same weapon used to kill Jethava opposite Gujarat high court. 
    According to sources, Pandya was hiding in Mumbai and was in touch with other criminals. Sources added that Rajiv Kadam, additional commissioner of police (crime), Mumbai had got information about a criminal and found Pandya during a search. During questioning, he said that he was wanted in Gujarat in connection with a 2010 murder case and two attempt to murder cases of 2008. 
    When TOI contacted city crime branch officials, they feigned ignorance about the development. However, later, after contacting their counterparts in Mumbai, city police officials confirmed the arrest. According to a senior official, a team will start off for Mumbai early on Wednesday to get custody of him, after Mumbai police completes the formalities. 
    Jethava was shot dead at point-blank range by Pandya, along with another man, Pachan Shiva. The duo came near Jethava when he was coming out of Satyamev Complex opposite HC on July 20. Officials said that Jethava’s role as an activist had hindered some projects in protected forest areas. This had irked the powerful mining lobby. 
    In subsequent investigation, four persons were arrested for the murder, including Shiva Solanki, nephew of Junagadh MP Dinu Solanki, Bahadursinh Vadher, a police constable, Pachan Shiva, Vadher’s friend and Sanjay Chauhan, who pointed out Jethava to Pandya.

how he did a great help in filing RTI applications

DNA archieve- Wednesday, Dec 2, 2009

Justice KS Jhaveri of the Gujarat high court has issued notices to the state government and others pertaining to a writ petition seeking to accept Indian Postal Order (IPO) as one of the modes of payment to deposit fees during the filing of applications under Right to Information Act.

Bringing the issue to notice, the petitioner Amit Jethwa, a social worker, stated that the state government has not issued a notification to accept fees through IPO despite it being acceptable in all other states of the country.

“Payment through draft is expensive for the applicant while IPO is the cheapest way to deposit the amount,” said Vijay Nangesh, counsel for Jethwa.

According to the petition, Jethwa had moved an application before the public information officer (PIO) of the energy and the petrochemical department.The PIO asked Jethwa to deposit Rs108 as fee for the 54 pages of information.When Jethwa sent the fee of Rs110 through IPO, the PIO refused to accept the money and directed him to make payment by cash or demand draft.

Thereafter, Jethwa approached the chief information commissioner.

The commissioner issued suggestion to the general administration department to accept the IPO as a mode of paying fees.

Despite the suggestion, the government has not added IPO as a mode of payment in the RTI Act.Nangesh further submitted in the petition that the banks are charging more than the IPO.For instance one has to pay Rs30 for a Rs20 demand draft or pay order while the post office charges just Rs2 for the IPO of the same amount.

Gujarat govt agenda.. Save Dinu Solanki

DNA newspaper

The Detection of Crime Branch (DCB) on Wednesday filed the charge-sheet in the Amit Jethava murder case, in the metropolitan court. It is interesting that the charge-sheet mentions that Jethava's murder was a 'contract killing' but is silent on the alleged role of the BJP MP from Junagadh, Dinu Solanki.

Incidentally, Jethava's father has repeatedly alleged that the MP was involved in his son's murder. Amit Jethava, who was an RTI activist, was killed in cold blood in front of the Gujarat high court complex.

During the investigation, it was revealed that the main accused, Shailesh Pandya, and his accomplice, had fired at the RTI activist when he was killed. At the time, Jethava was returning after meeting his lawyer Vijay Nangesh at the Satymev complex located in front of the high court.

According to the charge-sheet, Pandya was paid to eliminate the RTI activist. He was given money in two instalments - the first of Rs2.5 lakh and the second of Rs1 lakh - through an angadia (local courier service provider).

The DCB had recorded the statement of the owners of the angadia firm.

The DCB has arrested Dinu Solanki's nephew, Shiva Solanki, police constable Bahadursinh, Sanjay Chauhan and one Shiva Panchan. The police constable was a close ally of Shiva. 
The police also took the statement of Jethava's family members, local people of Junagadh and Amreli, and also of the doctors who had conducted the post-mortem on Jethava.

However, the charge-sheet says nothing about the alleged role of Dinu Solanki. Now the accused in the case are likely to file for bail on the ground that as the charge-sheet had been filed and the investigation in the case had concluded, they ought to be released on bail.

Amit Jethava was killed allegedly because he blew the whistle on the illegal mining going on in the Gir reserve forest area. He had filed a public interest litigation (PIL) petition in the Gujarat high court in this regard but he was killed before the high court could take any action in the matter.

Jethava's father has moved an application in the high court (through lawyer Anand Yagnik) seeking a CBI investigation into his son's murder.

The high court has asked the DCB for its probe 
report in the case. The charge-sheet includes a mammoth record of telephone call details, 93 
witnesses of Saurashtra and Ahmedabad, and 50 Panch witnesses.

Chargesheet silent on BJP MP’s role

the times of india

activist Amit Jethava

Ahmedabad: The city crime branch, which investigated the murder of RTI activist and whistle blowerAmit Jethava, has given a clean chit to BJP MP from Junagadh Dinu Bogha Solanki. In the chargesheet filed on Thursday, constable Bahadursinh Vadher and Solanki’s nephew Pratap alias Shiva Solanki have been held wholly responsible for the killing. The chargesheet also says that Jethava was killed for a supari of Rs 11 lakh. 
    The chargesheet, filed against five persons, is silent on the parliamentarian’s role in the incident, though Jethava’s family members have been claiming that it was Solanki who was behind the murder. Anticipating that the Gujarat police would not ‘touch’ the sitting MP, Jethava’s father has even sought transfer of investigation to a central agency. The murder took place a few days after Jethava filed a PIL against the MP’s alleged illegal mining activities in the prohibited Gir sanctuary. 
    The probe agency did not even record the MP’s statement and his name does not figure in the list of 142 witnesses in the case. The chargesheet claims that Vadher and Shiva conspired to eliminateJethava at Kodinar because Jethava was troubling them by using RTI to cause major damage to their businesses. 
    The chargesheet narrates how a mine purchased by Vadher’s family in Alidar village in Gir sanctuary could not function because of Jethava’s numerous complaints. The mine had to be sold out ultimately. The probe agency also highlighted that since Vadher and Shiva were in the business of renting plots for installation of cellphone towers, their alleged illegal installations in and around Una and Kodinar towns were under scanner because of Jethava’s activism. Fed up with Jethava, the duo planned to eliminate him. 
    As per the plan, Vadher hired absconder Shailesh Pandya offering him Rs 11 lakh. Pandya tried to kill Jethava on July 11, but failed. Ultimately he succeeded on July 20, when with help of one Udaji Thakor; he fired at Jethava in front of the Gujarat high court premises on the busy SG Highway. The amount for contract killing was paid in two installments through courier services, out of which Pandya got Rs 3.5 lakh. The chargesheet also describes how the SIM cards purchased to execute the conspiracy were thrown in the Hiral River in Gir sanctuary. 
    Adivision bench in the high court, which hears the PIL, is also supervising the investigation.

biography of activist

http://freeblogin.com/amit-jethwa-rti-activist-and-green-crusader/
Amit jethwa ( also Amit jethava ) was an Indian environmentalist and social worker active in the gir forest area- natural habitat of Asiatic lion near Junagadh, Gujarat. Amit jethwa was a amazing force by himself. A young tall well built environment activist had dynamic personality who was active in Gujarat state on environment issues.

prominent activist Amit jethwa

He started his carrier as a pharmacist in government hospital. from then he observed corruption and malfunction in government system. As a native person of gir forest area he was emotionally attached to lions and environment. He was founder president of regional local youth club named Gir nature youth club of young environmentalist. The group has grown large with more than 4000 active members. Club has its own vigilance team to keep an eye on illegal hunt and killing of sea turtles, whale shark through out the coastal area of gujarat.He had organized a nature lovers yatra in southern Saurashtra belt. Be it about saving marine turtles,or Chinkara, lion, leopard, tree, birds or crocodile, Jethwa was there at service in Kutch, Saurashtra and Ahmedabad. He was one stop resource for any information regarding Gir forest and forest department’s handling of affairs there. He had amazing grip over South western Saurashtra areas, especially ecological and environment related issues.

In the lion poaching case of 2007, Jethava was among the first to blow the whistle on the mysterious deaths of lions in Gir forest. He later campaigned against shifting of lions to the Kuno Palpur national park in Madhya Pradesh. In the Aamir Khan chinkara poaching incident Jethava had earlier filed a writ petition in HC seeking quashing orders against a Bhuj court which stayed an inquiry against Khan.

Be it lion poaching, illegal mining, the famous Aamir Khan-chinkara poaching case, the appointment of information commissioners in Gujarat—Jethava used RTI and public interest litigations (PIL) as weapons to fight for public issues. In his latest case Jethava had dragged the state government to Gujarat High Court regarding the appointment of an ombudsman or Lokayukta for Gujarat which has been pending since 2003.

He started a program called ‘mahiti adhikar nagarik mandal (peoples group of right to information)’ to aware people about use of new act. Since 2006 Jethava spearheaded the RTI campaign in Khamba. Every month he and his team would organise mass awareness programmes regarding the new law. From school students to retired employees, women and small traders had been using this new tool in his taluka to get their rights. He also actively pursued the provisions of the RTI Act for addressing grievances, and conducted workshops on the procedure to file requests under RTI to prevent corrupt practices and other mal-administration.

Since 2008, he had filed a number of RTI applications probing the activities of an illegal mining lobby operating in the protected forest area just outside the Gir National Park. In mid 2010, he also filed a Public Interest Litigation in the Gujarat High Court, citing evidence found through RTI naming BJP MP Dinu Solanki and his several relatives, for involvement in the illegal mining in the Gir Forest.

Jethava had spearheaded the campaign against rising case pendency in the Gujarat Information Commission (GIC) due to lack of commissioners. It was on his petition that the HC directed the state government to complete the appointments within a stipulated time. He had also filed a PIL petition questioning the state government’s inaction over the appointment of Lokayukt.
He again came to the rescue of thousands of RTI users by filing a writ petition in the HC and made the government accept Indian Postal Order (IPO) as one of the modes of payment to deposit fees while filing of RTI applications.

With the suitable use of RTI, he had filed several court cases against illegal mining in the protected area, by which a large number of influential persons of that area, including Dinu Solanki, the BJP MP from Junagarh, were getting adversely affected. His fight against encroachment of forests and poaching had become legendary in that area.In beginning of July 2010 he filed case in gujarat high court against illegal mining naming BJP MP Dinu Solanki and his nephew Shiva solanki as the respondant. soon after this PIL he was shot dead by two motor cycle born assailant on 20th July 2010 right opposite side of gujarat high court. his father named Dinu and Shiva Solanki as the persons who gave contract for eliminate green activist.

Amit was irreplaceable. He was a force, rare in this time. He was not facebook or twitter or blogger activist, he was an activist on ground equipped with all needed tools to fight for truth. His murder is very shocking. He could do more for Gujarat. It’s a tremendous
loss.The National RTI Forum of India presents the Satish Shetty RTI Gallantry award to Amit Jethwa posthumously.

Murder of Truth by Governments in India

http://matheikal.wordpress.com/2010/08/31/murder-of-truth/

Amit Jethava

Amit Jethwa, 33, was killed in broad daylight near the Gujarat High Court on July 20.  He had been campaigning to prevent mining around the Girnar Wildlife Sanctuary.  He used RTI and other legal provisions to advance his campaign.  He received many threats from the ruling BJP’s MP from Junagadh.  The BJP Chief Minister of Gujarat, Narendra Modi, is acclaimed for bringing industrial development to the state.  He is also famous for eliminating large numbers of people for political benefits for himself and his party.  Modi may not be directly involved in the murder of Jethwa.  But can he and his party not bring development to the state without murdering people, especially people who stand for truth and justice?

The malady is not confined to Gujarat alone, however.  Satish Shetty, Dattatraya Patil, Arun Sawant and Vitthal Gite are victims of the murderers of truth in Maharashtra.  Shashidhar Mishra of Bihar, Vijay Pratap of UP and Sola Ranga Rao of AP also fell victims to mafia attacks because they all questioned certain corrupt practices using RTI.

Frontline quotes Arvind Kejriwal, RTI activist and Magsaysay award winner: “Those who indulge in corruption have become so aggressive, so bold and so intolerant that they don’t even fear the law and order machinery.”

The hijacking of law and order by criminals in connivance with the authorities who are supposed to uphold law and order is what is appalling.  When the government itself becomes an embodiment of criminality what will the citizens do?  Who but the government will be responsible for the emergence of extremist groups like the Maoists?

Instead of rectifying the situation by cleaning up the stables, the governments are trying to reign in the provisions in RTI.  Many amendments are being sought in the RTI Act.  Eventually the Act will be made ineffective by the governments.

George Bernard Shaw said, “Power does not corrupt men; but fools, if they get into a position of power, corrupt power.”  India seems to have become a country where power is corrupted absolutely.

RTI should not be casualty of corrupt bureaucrats

The Pioneer

The Right To Information (RTI) should not become a casualty of corrupt bureaucrats and others and it is quite disturbing to hear about threats to RTI activists, Law Minister M Veerappa Moily said on Monday.

Reacting to murder of Right To Information activists in parts of the country, he said, “There are instances of attacks on Right To Information activists. Some of them are Amit Jethwa, an environmentalist in Gujarat, and Satish Shetty, an activist in Maharashtra. These attacks and killings have to be taken seriously and dealt with an iron hand,” Moily said at the 5th annual convention of Central Information Commission. 

selective amnesia

the pioneer

The Congress was quick to return fire on the Geeta Johri issue. Party spokesman Manish Tewari told reporters, “The issue of CBI misuse was raised...It is selective amnesia. I want to ask the BJP, the CBI was right in Haren Pandya case but wrong in the case of Amit Shah. They are now citing Geeta Johri but forgetting the father of Haren Pandya, who had pointed a finger at Narendra Modi.”

The BJP has “double standards” on the issue, Tewari said, adding that RTI activist Amit Jethwa’s father wanted his murder case to be handed over to the CBI as he did not trust the State Government, “descri-bed as a modern day Nero by the Supreme Court”. 

Jethava murder culprit nabbed

http://www.dailypioneer.com/281534/Jethava-murder-culprit-nabbed.html


The main culprit in the murder of RTI activist Amit Jethava was arrested from Rajkot airport on Tuesday. Shiva Solanki, whose illegal mobile tower and minerals transport businesses were severely affected due to Jethava’s activism, was nabbed by the Crime Branch cops minutes before he was about to board a Mumbai bound flight from Rajkot.

He is the nephew of Junagadh MP Dinubhai Solanki whom slain Jethava’s father had blamed for the RTI activist’s murder outside the Gujarat High Court on July 20.

The police had earlier arrested a constable who had allegedly arranged the contract killing with a payment of `10 lakh.

Further investigations have revealed that the main kingpin of the contract killing was Shiva Solanki whose illegal mobile tower business had suffered losses due to the RTI activist’s petitions, police sources said.