RSS Pramuk Mohan Bhagwat expresses concern over the Palghar killings of 2 saints saying there is NO place for violence or such heinous incident in society

AMIDT conflicting versions on media about the condemnable Palghar lynchings of two  Juna Akhada monks with their driver on April 16, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat has slammed their killings saying there is no place for violence in society. It was the responsibility of the administration to keep law and order in check, Bhagwat said in an online address to workers of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.”Sanyasis  (saints) who pray for the well-being of humanity were brutally killed in Palghar. What was the police doing? Such an incident should not have happened,” he said. The sadhus were messengers of humanity and were following the religion they believed in, he said. Hindu  Dharma Acharya Sabha has appealed for offering tributes to the two saints on April 28, Bhagwat said. “The Vishwa Hindu Parishad has also laid out a programme for the same. We will all join in offering our tribute to them,” he added. Community leaders should tell people not to be angry and get misled. There are anti-India forces who are waiting to grab such opportunity to break the country, he added. The two sadhus and their driver were killed  in Maharashtra’s Palghar district while they  on their way to a funeral in neighbouring Silvassa. Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh later said there was no Muslim among the 101 persons arrested in connection with the incident. Maharashtra CM  Uddhav Thackeray says Palghar killings of Juna Akhada  monks are  NOT communal. ex-CM Devendra, however, Fadnavis cries foul. The killings of the hermits belonging to Juna Akhada,the largest Order of Hindu saints, with their driver   by a 200-strong mob of villagers near Kasa town in Palghar district on suspicion that they were thieves, have enraged the people. It is alleged  that villagers first hurled stones at the van, prompting the driver to stop the vehicle. Later, they pulled three persons out of the vehicle and beat them to death in Gadhchinchale village on Dabhadi-Khanwel road, with sticks and rods. The deceased identified as Chikne Maharaj Kalpavrukshagiri (70), Sushilgiri Maharaj (35) and driver Nilesh Telgade (30) were travelling to Surat. Of them, one was the diver, while two are residents of Kandivli in north Mumbai. The place where the incident took place is about  120 km from Mumbai. Acting sternly against the culprits behind the ghastly lynchings , Maharashtra Police have arrested 101 persons, including nine minors, in connection with the incident and Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray has ordered the suspension of two policemen, transferred the case to the Crime Investigation Department (CID) and deplored the efforts to communalise the crime. On a day when State Home Minister Anil Deshmukh announced the arrest of 101 persons in connection with the lynchings, the Chief Minister spoke to Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and briefed them about the incident. Meanwhile, All India President of June Akhara Mahant Prem Giri has threatened to stage gherao of Uddhav Thackeray after the lockdown is over and demanded action against the culprits. Addressing the people across the nation through social media, Uddhav said  “Currently, we are waging a war against coronavirus. Some people are using the incident to vitiate the atmosphere. Though two sadhus were among the three lynched in the incident, please do not give a communal colour to the incident. I have spoken to Union Home Minister Amit Shah this morning in this regard”. Uddhav said: “This incident took place on the night of April 16 in the jurisdiction of the Kasa police station, which is on the border of the Centrally administered-territory of Dadra Nagar Haveli. The incident happened when two sadhus and their driver were returning to Mumbai, after being stopped at the border. They were attacked at a hinterland area. The incident was triggered by some rumours”, he added.(image courtesy to Viswaa Sambada Kendra)