Bhima Koregaon case: Pune Police files 1,837-page-long chargesheet against five activists

The Pune Police filed a 1,837-page chargesheet on Thursday against five activists in the Bhima Koregaon case. The chargesheet was filed against activists Sudha Bharadwaj, Varavara Rao, Arun Ferreira and Vernon Gonsalves and accused Ganapathy, who is the former general secretary of the banned organisation Communist Party of India (Maoist).

Last week, the Supreme Court had set aside a Bombay High Court order refusing to extend the 90-day deadline given to the Maharashtra government. The state had also sought an extension of the custody of the five activists arrested in the case on 6 June, 2018.

Violent clashes were reported in Bhima Koregaon village near Pune on 1 January, 2018, allegedly caused due to inflammatory speeches at an Elgar Parishad event organised by the accused. The event was held to mark the 200th year of the battle of Bhima Koregaon.

In a 5,000-page chargesheet filed in December last year, the Pune Police accused Dalit rights activist Sudhir Dhawale, senior lawyer Surendra Gadling, prisoners’ rights activist Rona Wilson, tribal rights activist Mahesh Raut and retired professor Shoma Sen of inciting violence in Bhima Koregaon.