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HRS founder has over 20 cases against him

Written By Sandip Kolhatkar | Updated: Jun 04, 2014, 10:00 PM IST

On March 13, 2014, the Hadapsar police station had issued a notice to Dhananjay Jayram Desai, the founder of Hindu Rashtra Sena (HRS), a radical organisation, to keep his calm while speaking at a 'Shivjayanti' function, held by a local organisation called Rashtriya Patil Talim Sangh. Desai was invited by the organisation as the chief guest for the programme. 

It was the members of this very outfit that are said to be involved in the recent murder of young techie from Pune. 24 year-old Mohsin Sadiq Shaikh, a techie from Solapur, was attacked and killed near his home in Bankar Colony, Hadapsar following violent protesters to the presence of derogatory contents of Shivaji Maharaj and late Shiv Sena Chief Bal Thackeray on social networking sites.

Looking at his past records of making inflammatory speeches, the cops, who found his name on the invitation card as a chief guest, immediately shot a notice to him and warned him not to make hateful speeches which can disturb the communal harmony in the society.

Desai who hails from Vile Parle in Mumbai, making the mockery of the notice, posted the cops notice on his Facebook profile and wrote a comment that such notices have piled up in his house and every month he gets some thousand rupees after selling them in junk. 

 
Post by Dhananjay Desai.

 
As per the cops, Hindu Rashtra Sena has several branches in the state and majority of the branches are in the fringe villages of the city where the youth is easily attracted to their ideologies.

There are over 20 cases against Desai for  making inflammatory speeches, circulating pamphlets against particular community and rioting, have been lodged against Desai with city police stations like Deccan Gymkhana, Shivajinagar, Cantonment police station, Hadapsar, Lonikand and several other police stations.

On Tuesday, the Cantonment police had arrested Desai in an old case in which he and his followers of HRS had circulated pamphlets in March 2014 which could hurt the religious sentiments. As per the Cantonment police, in March his some of the supporters were arrested, however, Desai went absconding.

On Wednesday, Desai who was produced in the cantonment court got bail however moment he got the bail, Lonikand police station had arrested him in their case of distributing pamphlets and making inflammatory speeches.

One also has to remember, Desai was grilled by the crime branch in Narendra Dabholkar case and was booked by the Deccan Gymkhana police station when the supporters of HRS were about to oppose Sanjay Dutt's entry to Balgandharv auditorium, where he was to take part in a play which was organised by Yerawada jail inmates.

Desai and HRS even staged protest outside Shivajinagar court and demanded execution of Himayat Baig, the sole convict in German bakery blast case.

Various individuals and organisations have come out in condemnation of Dhananjay Desai and Hindu Rashtra Sena: