According to Joshi, he was acquainted with Vaibhav Raut (40) and his family for over 15 years. He had rented the flat of Kalaskar upon Raut's recommendation.
A new name has cropped up in the Nalasopara explosives case. Vijay Joshi is the owner of the flat, which was rented to the second arrested accused, Sharad Kalaskar (25) for a month. Joshi is a resident of Nalasopara.
According to Joshi, he was acquainted with Vaibhav Raut (40) and his family for over 15 years. He had rented the flat of Kalaskar upon Raut's recommendation.
Vaibhav Raut (40), Kalaskar and Sudhanava Gondhalekar were arrested in connection with possession of arms and other unlawful activities. The trio — who are suspected to be planning to create chaos in the state — were drilled thoroughly in custody following which the ATS seized additional ammo and other chunks of equipment from Nalasopara and Pune.
Speaking more about Kalaskar to DNA, Joshi said, "Raut and I shared a very friendly relation and we both knew each other for more than a decade. Basically, I interpreted him as a spiritual and a noble person, who used to promote Hinduism and its culture in an apt manner to all and he was very much against the practice of cow slaughtering and for that purpose, he used to volunteer in the vicinity and also used social media on a large scale for the same."
Joshi — an astrologer and a priest — stayed on the 2nd floor of the Alora Building, Nalasopara west with his family. He later shifted to another place keeping his old flat as his office to coordinate with his clients. For this purpose, Joshi regularly visited his flat-cum-office for two hours in the evening.
"The flat was vacant for a few years and then Raut approached me in July this year and asked me to rent my flat to Kalaskar, who he knew personally. Raut said that the boy comes from a decent background and is facing poor financial conditions. He said that the flat was required only for his night stay and all his other requirements shall be fulfilled by himself. Since I trusted him, I permitted Kalaskar to stay without charging any rent from him."
"My interaction with him was very limited and he had a very few belongings with him. I never had any suspicion against him as he was well behaved and gentle by his gestures. He always used to leave in the morning and used to come late at night after finishing his dinner from a nearby hotel. One evening, I came to the flat early than schedule and there he was doing something unusual with his belongings and then he looked nervous as I was unexpected to be there." Joshi added.
On August 9, when Joshi visited the flat, he found the door latch open, and all the flat material was scattered, including some of his office properties. He thought of contacting Raut since the latter had an additional key of the flat, but his mobile was not reachable so he considered of speaking to Raut and Kalaskar on the next day. But before he could contact them, he learnt that Raut was arrested by the ATS on that night with some explosives at his residence. Next day, the flat neighbours said that about ten officials had arrested Kalaskar from the flat and had seized some materials found inside.
"I was taken aback by shock and surprise. The man I was sheltering considering his financial condition was indulged in such activities ever since he came here. I don't know how he was associated with Raut and what they were planning, but this incident has invited more troubles and social pressure upon me and my family."
"Trusting Raut was my biggest mistake as I could never sense what he was up to and his actions have landed my family in trouble. Fortunately, they were apprehended before executing their plan but if caught later then the consequences would be serious. I can confidently say that my flat has no traces of any explosives and ammunition and neither anything has been seized by the ATS as of now. I have submitted my statement to the ATS and also to the Nalasopara police so if there is any possibility of inquiry or interrogation I am ready to speak up to the concerned authorities." Joshi said.
When approached the ATS and the Nalasopara police, the officials refused to give any statement regarding the case.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
 "Apartment")
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}