Dinu Solanki
Encyclopedia
Dinubhai "Dinu" Boghabhai Solanki (b. 1958), is a Bharatiya Janata Party
politician from Junagadh
, Gujarat. He came under media gaze after the RTI
crusader Amit Jethwa
was murdered; his nephew Shiva Solanki has been arrested as the prime suspect in the murder.
Solanki won the Gujarat Legislative assembly seat from Kodinar
in 2002 with a margin of 2000 votes, and in 2009 was elected to the 15th Lok Sabha
after defeating his Indian National Congress
rival Barad Jashubhai Dhanabhai by a margin of 1.8%. He had declared assets of nearly Rs. 2 crore
s in 2009 He has a history of criminal charges and has complaints registered against him under Sections 323, 324, 325, 143, 147, 148, 149 and 504 of the IPC He also has a history of intimidating police officers investigating his criminal connections.
He is a close colleague of ex-BJP minister Amit Shah
, currently in jail on charges of ordering the murder of Sohrabuddin Shaikh.
had filed six requests under the Right to Information Act
, probing the activities of an illegal mining lobby operating in the Gir Forest National Park
area. At the time, Jethwa was badly beaten up by goons, allegedly from Solanki's party.
In mid 2010, Solanki and a number of his relatives were named by Jethwa in for illegal mining in a Public interest litigation
case filed with the Gujarat High Court
.
Jethwa's family has claimed that Solanki had personally threatened Jethwa of dire consequences for pursuiing this action, on several occasions in front of many people.
Shortly after the filing of this PIL, on July 20, Jethwa was shot dead at close range by two assailants on a motorbike. Solanki was named by the family as having a hand in the murder, and
Jethwa's father alleged that he had personally received threatening phone calls from Solanki.
After the murder, Solanki went underground, and could not be traced by the investigating team. However, he has brought out advertisements in three Gujarati dailies, claiming he had "no enmity with Amit Jethava."
Shiva had asked constable Bahadursinh to get Amit Jethawa eliminated. "Bahadur then planned the crime and executed it with the help of sharpshooters Shailesh Pandya and Pachan Shiva."
Shiva Solanki alias Pratap, 40, is himself a BJP politician, president of kodinar nagar palika. He is perceived as the right-hand man of his uncle, whose two sons don't live in Gujarat. Shiva and Dinu allegedly have a number of illegal mining businesses that were affected by Amit Jethwa’s public interest litigations. In 2003, three high-ranking police officers had sent letters to the home ministry, on rampant illegal activity in Junagadh by Shiva, with protection from his MP uncle. The ministry, then headed by Amit Shah
(currently imprisoned for murder), did not heed these letters.
Bharatiya Janata Party
The Bharatiya Janata Party ,; translation: Indian People's Party) is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Indian National Congress. Established in 1980, it is India's second largest political party in terms of representation in the parliament...
politician from Junagadh
Junagadh
Junagadh is the headquarters of Junagadh district in the Indian state of Gujarat. The city is the 7th largest in Gujarat. The city is located at the foot of the Girnar hills, 355 km south west of state capital Gandhinagar and Ahmedabad. The city is in western India. Literally translated,...
, Gujarat. He came under media gaze after the RTI
RTI
- Broadcasters :* Radiodiffusion Television Ivoirienne - The state broadcaster of Ivory Coast* Radio Taiwan International* Reti Televisive Italiane, Mediaset group * RTI Colombia, a TV production company- Other companies :...
crusader Amit Jethwa
Amit Jethwa
Amit Jethwa was an Indian environmentalist and social worker, active in the Gir Forest area near Junagadh, Gujarat. He had filed several court cases against illegal mining in the protected area, naming Bharatiya Janata Party member of parliament, Dinu Solanki as one of the respondents...
was murdered; his nephew Shiva Solanki has been arrested as the prime suspect in the murder.
Solanki won the Gujarat Legislative assembly seat from Kodinar
Kodinar
Kodinar is a city and a municipality in Junagadh district in the Indian state of Gujarat, west of Una. Kodinar is close to the Gir Forest National Park....
in 2002 with a margin of 2000 votes, and in 2009 was elected to the 15th Lok Sabha
15th Lok Sabha
Members of the 15th Lok Sabha were elected in 2009 during the General Elections in India.- Important members :* Speaker: Meira Kumar, Indian National Congress, Sasaram, Bihar...
after defeating his Indian National Congress
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
rival Barad Jashubhai Dhanabhai by a margin of 1.8%. He had declared assets of nearly Rs. 2 crore
Crore
A crore is a unit in the Indian number system equal to ten million , or 100 lakhs. It is widely used in India, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Pakistan....
s in 2009 He has a history of criminal charges and has complaints registered against him under Sections 323, 324, 325, 143, 147, 148, 149 and 504 of the IPC He also has a history of intimidating police officers investigating his criminal connections.
He is a close colleague of ex-BJP minister Amit Shah
Amit Shah
Amit Shah served from 2005 to 2008 as the mayor of the city of Ahmedabad, in the state of Gujarat, India. He is affiliated with the BJP.Shah is an accountant by profession, and worked at the Ahmedabad District Cooperative bank...
, currently in jail on charges of ordering the murder of Sohrabuddin Shaikh.
Allegations in Amit Jethwa murder
Since 2008, activist Amit JethwaAmit Jethwa
Amit Jethwa was an Indian environmentalist and social worker, active in the Gir Forest area near Junagadh, Gujarat. He had filed several court cases against illegal mining in the protected area, naming Bharatiya Janata Party member of parliament, Dinu Solanki as one of the respondents...
had filed six requests under the Right to Information Act
Right to Information Act
The Right to Information Act 2005 is an Act of the Parliament of India "to provide for setting out the practical regime of right to information for citizens." The Act applies to all States and Union Territories of India except the State of Jammu and Kashmir. Jammu and Kashmir has its own act...
, probing the activities of an illegal mining lobby operating in the Gir Forest National Park
Gir Forest National Park
The Gir Forest National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary is a forest and wildlife sanctuary in Gujarat, India...
area. At the time, Jethwa was badly beaten up by goons, allegedly from Solanki's party.
In mid 2010, Solanki and a number of his relatives were named by Jethwa in for illegal mining in a Public interest litigation
Public interest litigation
In Indian law, Public Interest Litigation OR जनहित याचिका means litigation for the protection of the public interest. It is litigation introduced in a court of law, not by the aggrieved party but by the court itself or by any other private party...
case filed with the Gujarat High Court
Gujarat High Court
The Gujarat High Court is the High Court of the state of Gujarat. It was established on 1 May 1960 under the Bombay Re-organisation Act, 1960 after the state split from Bombay State.The seat of the court is Ahmedabad...
.
Jethwa's family has claimed that Solanki had personally threatened Jethwa of dire consequences for pursuiing this action, on several occasions in front of many people.
Shortly after the filing of this PIL, on July 20, Jethwa was shot dead at close range by two assailants on a motorbike. Solanki was named by the family as having a hand in the murder, and
Jethwa's father alleged that he had personally received threatening phone calls from Solanki.
After the murder, Solanki went underground, and could not be traced by the investigating team. However, he has brought out advertisements in three Gujarati dailies, claiming he had "no enmity with Amit Jethava."
Nephew Shiva Solanki arrested
During investigations, the police arrested constable Bahadursinh Wadher and then Pachan Silva, who was allegedly one of the hired killers. Later, on 6 September 2010, they arrested Shiva Solanki, nephew of Dinu Solanki, as the main accused in the case. According to police sources,Shiva had asked constable Bahadursinh to get Amit Jethawa eliminated. "Bahadur then planned the crime and executed it with the help of sharpshooters Shailesh Pandya and Pachan Shiva."
Shiva Solanki alias Pratap, 40, is himself a BJP politician, president of kodinar nagar palika. He is perceived as the right-hand man of his uncle, whose two sons don't live in Gujarat. Shiva and Dinu allegedly have a number of illegal mining businesses that were affected by Amit Jethwa’s public interest litigations. In 2003, three high-ranking police officers had sent letters to the home ministry, on rampant illegal activity in Junagadh by Shiva, with protection from his MP uncle. The ministry, then headed by Amit Shah
Amit Shah
Amit Shah served from 2005 to 2008 as the mayor of the city of Ahmedabad, in the state of Gujarat, India. He is affiliated with the BJP.Shah is an accountant by profession, and worked at the Ahmedabad District Cooperative bank...
(currently imprisoned for murder), did not heed these letters.