SITs In Maharashtra: Solving Cases Or Silencing Critics?

The Eknath Shinde-led Maharashtra government has announced the formation of yet another special investigation team, this time to probe the molestation of two minor students at a school in Badlapur. This decision came on the heels of a day-long rail-roko agitation organised by citizens and opposition party members. The Badlapur case SIT adds to a growing list of such investigative teams established by the Shinde government over the past two years.

Opposition parties have accused the government of using SITs as a convenient tactic whenever it faces pressure over law and order issues. They point out that none of the SITs formed in the last two years have produced final reports, and the progress of their investigations remains shrouded in mystery. Since the Mahayuti alliance assumed power, more than half a dozen SITs have been constituted.

Among these is an SIT announced to investigate a firing incident involving Bharatiya Janata Party MLA Ganpat Gaikwad inside a Kalyan police station. Another SIT has been tasked with probing the suicide of Disha Salian, the late actor Sushant Singh Rajput's manager.

Additionally, an SIT is investigating alleged underworld connections of a Shiv Sena (UBT) politician from Nashik, who was reportedly seen partying with Salim Kutta, an accused in the 1993 Mumbai blasts. The controversy surrounding the entry of Muslims into the Trimbakeshwar temple in Nashik also led to the formation of an SIT.