Shrikant Pangarkar accused in the 2017 Gauri Lankesh murder case, has won the Jalna Municipal Corporation election as an independent candidate (PHOTO: X)
Shrikant Pangarkar, who’s facing trial for the 2017 murder of journalist Gauri Lankesh, just pulled off a surprise win in the Jalna Municipal Corporation polls.
He ran as an independent and grabbed the Ward 13 seat, beating BJP and other party candidates by 2,621 votes. The moment the results came in, Pangarkar and his supporters wasted no time celebrating.
This election took an interesting turn when the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena skipped the contest in Ward 13. That left independents and rival parties to battle it out, turning the race into a real free-for-all.
Pangarkar’s legal troubles are far from over. The murder case is still grinding its way through court. After his win, he pointed out that he hasn’t been convicted and the legal fight continues.
Videos of him celebrating with his followers spread quickly online, sparking new arguments about people facing criminal charges while holding public office.
The Jalna Municipal Corporation elections happened on January 15.
Gauri Lankesh’s murder still casts a long shadow. She was a journalist and activist, shot dead outside her Bengaluru home on September 5, 2017. Her killing set off protests across the country and reignited fierce debates about freedom of expression and political intolerance.
Police named Pangarkar as an accused in the case. The Karnataka High Court granted him bail on September 4, 2024.
Pangarkar isn’t new to local politics. He served as a corporator for Jalna’s municipal council between 2001 and 2006, back when he was with the undivided Shiv Sena. In 2011, after being denied a party ticket, he switched to the Hindu Janjagruti Samiti.
His legal troubles don’t stop at the Lankesh case. In August 2018, Maharashtra’s Anti-Terrorism Squad arrested him after finding crude bombs and weapons in several locations.
He was charged under the Explosives Act, the Explosive Substances Act, and the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act.
Just before the November 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections, Pangarkar briefly joined Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena. But after a public backlash, Shinde quickly put Pangarkar’s membership on hold.
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