Panvelkar firing case raised in Maharashtra Council; Sena (UBT) MLA targets govt

KALYAN: The firing incident outside the office-cum-residence of Ambernath-based builder Vishwanath Panvelkar echoed in the Maharashtra Legislative Council on Thursday, with Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Ambadas Danve accusing the state government of failing to ensure justice in the case.Raising the issue during the Monsoon Session, Danve alleged that a ruling party MLA from Murbad had given supari to a jailed gangster to intimidate Panvelkar. He claimed that the allegation had surfaced through a letter purportedly written by gangster Ejaz Lakdawala, but no action had been taken despite the disclosure.Danve further alleged that Panvelkar had approached the Prime Minister, the President, the Chief Minister and the police administration seeking justice, but had failed to receive any relief.

He claimed that political pressure had influenced the investigation and demanded an impartial probe into the matter.The case dates back to April 21, 2025, when two unidentified motorcycle-borne assailants opened fire outside 'Sitai Sadan', Panvelkar's five-storey office-cum-residence near Hutatma Chowk in Ambernath East. Two rounds were fired, though no one was injured. The Shivajinagar police later arrested the alleged bike rider, Khalid Shahid Sayyed, and the alleged shooter, history-sheeter Jitendra Pawar alias Tiger Bhai.

The investigation took a fresh turn in April 2026 after Lakdawala, lodged in jail, allegedly wrote to the Thane police commissioner claiming that associates of BJP MLA Kisan Kathore had approached him with a contract to eliminate Panvelkar over an ongoing land dispute. Panvelkar subsequently accused Kathore of orchestrating the attack.Kathore, however, in past has strongly denied the allegations, describing them as a conspiracy to tarnish his image. He has accused Panvelkar of illegally grabbing land belonging to Adivasi families and has filed a Rs 100-crore defamation suit against the