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Koregaon Bhima violence: Lawyer calls Prakash Ambedkar’s letter on Sharad Pawar ‘belated’
In the letter, Pawar had alleged that the violence was orchestrated by the then Bharatiya Janata Party-led state government under Devendra Fadnavis and that the state machinery, particularly the police, had been mi
Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) chief Prakash Ambedkar has written to the Bhima Koregaon Commission, requesting that Nationalist Congress Party (SP) chief Sharad Pawar be summoned on the violence that occurred here in 2018 and asked to furnish a letter he had written to then-chief minister Uddhav Thackeray on January 24, 2020.
The violence on January 1, 2018, at Koregaon Bhima and other parts of Pune left one person dead and several injured.
In the letter, Pawar had alleged that the violence was orchestrated by the then Bharatiya Janata Party-led state government under Devendra Fadnavis and that the state machinery, particularly the police, had been misused.
Special public prosecutor Shishir Hiray, responding to Ambedkar’s request, on Saturday, said that such a submission at this stage, when the commission’s work is nearing completion, would only cause unnecessary delays.
“If such submissions continue to be made now, the commission’s work will never end. He should have submitted the letter either at the time of Pawar’s deposition or when he originally sent it to the state government. However, if the commission directs us, we will file our response,” he said.
Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut did not respond to calls, while NCP (SP) spokesperson Ankush Kakade declined to comment on the matter.
In his application, Ambedkar attached a news report referencing Pawar’s 2020 letter to Thackeray, in which the veteran leader had sought a special investigation team (SIT) probe into the Koregaon Bhima violence and accused the Fadnavis government of shielding the conspirators. Ambedkar has urged the commission to summon Pawar again if necessary and to pass an order directing him to submit the letter.
Commission secretary VV Palnitkar confirmed that Ambedkar’s request has been received and that they are awaiting a response from the special public prosecutor. “After Advocate Hiray submits his say, we will decide whether to seek Pawar’s letter from the state government. As of now, no decision has been taken,” he said.
Ambedkar has argued that the Koregaon Bhima violence had three perspectives: first, the Pune rural superintendent of police pointed to the involvement of Hindutva leaders Milind Ekbote and Sambhaji Bhide; second, the Pune police commissioner claimed that Maoists were responsible; and third, Pawar asserted that right-wing Hindutva groups were behind the violence.
After the violent incident, the state government formed a commission of inquiry on February 9, 2018, led by retired Justice JN Patel and former chief secretary Sumit Mullick.
However, when Pawar was deposed before the commission on May 5, 2022, he avoided commenting on the role of Ekbote and Bhide. Under cross-examination by advocate BG Bansode, Pawar stated that he did not personally know them and had only learned about them through media reports. He also said that he would restrict his remarks to the facts mentioned in his affidavit.
In an additional affidavit filed before the commission in April 2022, Pawar stated that he had no personal knowledge of the sequence of events leading to the violence. His first affidavit, submitted in October 2018, noted that while he could not specifically name any group responsible, the involvement of right-wing forces could not be ruled out. However, he maintained that only law enforcement agencies could establish concrete evidence.
