Sadhvi Pragya, 7 others acquitted in RSS pracharak murder case

Self-styled godwoman Sadhvi Pragya Singh was acquitted by a court in Madhya Pradesh on Wednesday in the murder of Sunil Joshi, a right-wing activist. Seven others implicated in the case were acquitted.

Also read: Malegaon blast case: NIA court rejects bail application of Sadhvi Pragya

Joshi, a RSS pracharak, was shot dead in Dewas town's Chuna Khadan area on December 9, 2007, by two bike-borne assailants. He was reportedly on the run for the murder of a tribal Congress leader.

Pragya was not given a clean chit by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).

In 2015, Second Additional Session Judge Rajendra Kumar Verma had charged her, Vasudev Parmar and Anand Raj Kataria under Section 120 (B) (criminal conspiracy) and other relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

They had also charged five others -- Harshad Solanki, Lokesh Sharma, Rajendra Chaudhary, Ram Chandra Patel and Jitendra Sharma -- under Sections 120 (B) and 302 (murder) of the IPC.

She is imprisoned at Central Jail in Bhopal and is undergoing treatment in Pandit Khushilal Ayurveda Hospital.

Earlier, Sadhvi Pragya was given a clean chit by the NIA in the 2008 Malegaon bomb blasts case. The Joshi murder was transferred to NIA in 2011 after allegations that she was linked to a saffron terrorist.

Pragya was not present during the hearing of the court on Wednesday as she is currently undergoing treatment at a hospital.