E-Paper
Pune police file chargesheet, name 5 activists as ‘creators of violence’
Elgar parishad inspired Bhima Koregaon riots
Pune police on Thursday filed a chargesheet against 10 persons including five activists arrested for alleged links with banned outfit CPI (Maoist), which according to investigators, orchestrated caste riots at Bhima Koregaon.
The 5,160-page chargesheet filed by police before Sessions Judge K D Vadane, accuses advocate Surendra Gadling, Prof Shoma Sen, Sudhir Dhawale, Mahesh Raut, Rona Wilson and five others working with CPI (Maoist) to create violence on January 1 at Bhima Koregaon. Others charged by police include underground CPI (Maoist) members Milind Teltumbde, Prakash alias Navin alias Ritupan Goswami, Manglu, Deepu and Kisan alias Prashanto Bose.
Gadling and Sen, along with Gadchiroli-based activist Mahesh Raut; Mumbai-based Dalit activist and editor of Marathi magazine ‘Vidrohi’, Sudhir Dhawale; and research scholar from Delhi, Rona Wilson; were arrested by Pune Police on June 8 after multi-city raids were carried out across the country following clearance from the state home department.
The chargesheet accuses Dhawale and members of the Kabir Kala Manch (KKM), a left- leaning Dalit outfit, of delivering provocative speeches at the December 31 Elgar Parishad event in Pune, and other places in Maharashtra, which led to violence the next day when large number of Dalits had gathered at Bhima Koregaon to observe the 200th anniversary of a battle between British and Dalits. One person was killed while damage worth Rs 40 crore was caused during the riots.
“The loss to properties and human casualties during caste riots between Dalits and upper castes were orchestrated by the banned outfit CPI (Maoist),” stated the chargesheet submitted by assistant commissioner of police (ACP) Shivaji Pawar, who is investigating the case.
According to the chargesheet, Dhawale and Harshali Potdar, member of (KKM) contacted different Dalit outfits and twisted the history of the Bhima Koregaon battle. They also resorted to false propaganda over the issue and tried to convince the public that the government was antithetical to the Dalit community and created resentment amongst the Dalits against the government.
Besides these five accused charged, the Pune Police have also arrested five left-wing intellectuals - Telgu poet Vara Vara Rao, civil rights lawyer Sudha Bhardwaj, Mumbai- based lawyer and activists Arun Ferreira, Vernon Gonsalves, and Delhi-based journalist Gautam Navlakha, on August 29.
