The colonel, identified by the ATS source as Shrikant Prasad Purohit, is accompanied by two army officers, who will remain present during his interactions with ATS personnel, take notes, and report back to their superiors.
Six persons were killed and 101 injured when a bomb exploded at Bhikku Chowk in Malegaon, a Muslim-majority town in Nashik district, on September 29. Several people, including some who were once associated with Sangh Parivar outfits, have been rounded up in this connection.
A source in the army said Purohit was close to Major (retired) Ramesh Upadhyay, who is already in the custody of the squad for his alleged links with the blasts in Malegaon and Modasa, Gujarat, on the same day.
Upadhyay, 57, and Sameer Kulkarni, 37, were detained by the ATS last Saturday. They were arrested on Tuesday night and sent to 12 days in police custody by a Nashik court on Wednesday.
A senior ATS officer, who asked not to be identified, said Purohit’s name cropped up in the interrogation of Kulkarni and Upadhyay. “We will question him about this,” the officer said.
In an official statement, the army said, “In the course of investigations by the Maharashtra Police in the Malegaon blasts, some inputs of possible linkages of a serving army officer with other suspects have come to light. Accordingly, the police have sought to interact with the officer concerned and seek clarifications from him.”
The army said it had not received a formal application from the police but had decided to extend “full cooperation” and “facilitate interaction of the officer with the investigating officers of the police”.
The army said “further action” against the Lt Col would be based on the “outcome of the interaction and the clarifications”. A defence ministry source said if the police found enough evidence of anti-national activities against the officer, they could arrest him without prior permission. “They just have to inform the defence ministry after his arrest,” the source said.
The questioning of a serving officer in connection with a terrorist plot has greatly embarrassed the army. While some top officers are uncomfortable with the publicity being given to the involvement of men in uniform, most feel that the law should take its course and such elements should be weeded out.
Meanwhile, the ATS expects to conduct narco-analysis tests on Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur at the Kalina Forensic Science Laboratory on Friday. Thakur, who is being held at the Kalachowkie unit of the ATS, was arrested in Surat last Friday in connection with the Malegaon blast. The ATS says the motorcycle used in the blast was provided by her and she knew of the conspiracy.
