Govind Pansare : Are corporate or communal interests behind the shootings?

Why were senior communist leader Govind Pansare and his wife were attacked on Monday morning during morning walk? The Maharashtra police have yet to ascertain the cause behind the shooting.

"A few days ago, Pansare was one of the panelists to discuss 'Who killed Hemant Karkare' – the book written by former Inspector General SM Mushrif. The Hindutva extremist organisations had warned Pansare not to participate in the discussion. They threatened to 'teach him a lesson' if he participated. This he did, despite the threats," said a person who knew about this development.

Another recent incident happened in Shivaji University, where Pansare took a stand against Mahatma Gandhi's killer Naturam Godse. Pansare was very upset because the Gandhi's killed was being honoured, with a temple in his name mooted. Pansare condemned the exercise of glorifying Gandhi's killer in the strongest words. During his lecture, some people in the hall had asked Pansare not to criticise and defame Godse, and even threatened him with dire consequences," said an eyewitness to this incident.

Alternatively, the attack could have come from corporate interests. Pansare had raised several public-related issues and he was also at the forefront against the toll imposition in Kolhapur.