Malegaon: Togadia denies link with Lt Col Purohit

AHMEDABAD/NEW DELHI: VHP leader Pravin Togadia was on Monday sought to be linked with Abhinav Bharat, a right wing group suspected of being involved in Malegaon blast, but he denied media reports. The CBI, meanwhile, has also distanced itself from the controversy.

Reacting angrily to media reports, Togadia said in Ahmedabad that they were "false and malafide" and threatened to take legal action for dragging his name into the case.

In New Delhi, CBI rebutted reports about arrested Lt Colonel Srikant P Purohit, prime accused in the September 29 blast, having told the agency that Togadia had helped in the formation and funding of Abhinav Bharat.

"It is clarified that no CBI report, as referred in news item, has been prepared or sent to any office. Therefore, the details attributed to be part of the CBI report is not true," a CBI spokesperson said in a statement.

The CBI parried queries whether it had interrogated Purohit. "I have no comments to offer," the spokesperson said.

The blast in crowded power-loom city of Malegaon killed six and left over 80 injured. Purohit, Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur and nine others have been accused in the blast and face charges of murder and conspiracy. They were also booked under stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA).

In a statement, Togadia's advocate Dipak Shukla said, "My client firmly denies any funding or involvement related to Abhinav Bharat or any of their affiliated or non-affiliated people in any of their activities."

Shukla has also threatened to take legal action against those who are trying to drag Togadia's name in the Malegaon blast.