Varavara Rao, Surendra Gadling produced in Gadchiroli court

Gadchiroli police said both were brought from Pune and produced in a court in Aheri, which sent them to 11 days’ police custody.

Maharashtra police on Thursday produced noted poet and Maoist sympathiser, Varavara Rao and Nagpur-based lawyer Surendra Gadling in a local court in Gadchiroli in connection with a case related to burning of 75 trucks near Surajgarh allegedly by Maoists.

Maharashtra police on Thursday produced noted poet and Maoist sympathiser, Varavara Rao and Nagpur-based lawyer Surendra Gadling in a local court in Gadchiroli in connection with a case related to burning of 75 trucks near Surajgarh allegedly by Maoists. (PTI)

Gadchiroli police said both were brought from Pune and produced in a court in Aheri, which sent them to 11 days’ police custody.

Rao and Gadling were arrested by Pune police last year for their alleged links with Bhima-Koregaon violence that erupted last January.

Of them, Gadling was arrested along with academician Shoma Sen from Nagpur in June while writer and activist Varavara Rao was arrested from his home in Hyderabad in August, for his alleged involvement in the Bhima-Koregaon violence in Maharashtra and for being a part of an alleged plot to assassinate Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The Gadchiroli police were looking for them on Surajgarh violence incident in which over 75 trucks, ferrying iron ore were burnt down by suspected Maoists.

The incident took place when 400 to 500 activists of CPI (Maoist) and their supporters attacked the facility of a local mining company and set the trucks and three earthmovers afire.

Workers of the mining company were also held hostage for more than three hours by red rebels during the period.

Gadling’s lawyer, Barun Kumar said the police called Gadling’s wife and informed her about his arrest by the Gadchiroli police.

Hari Balaji, the additional SP of Gadchiroli, said that both were brought at Aheri on Thursday and produced before the local court for PCR.