Surajgarh mine arson case: Telugu poet Varavara Rao, advocate Surendra Gadling in police custody till 11 Feb

Nagpur: Telugu poet Varavara Rao, accused of having Maoist links, and advocate Surendra Gadling were arrested in connection with the 2016 Surjagarh iron or mine arson case, Gadchiroli police said on Friday. [caption id=“attachment_5425741” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Varavara Rao. PTI[/caption] On 25 December, 2016, at least 80 vehicles engaged in transporting iron from Surajgarh mines, in Etapalli tehsil of Gadchiroli, were torched by Naxals. A senior official said Rao and Gadling were arrested from Pune on Wednesday and produced in Aheri court in Gadchiroli on Thursday. The two have been remanded in police custody till 11 February, he added. “We have evidence of the involvement of the two in this case,” the official claimed. Rao and Gadling were earlier arrested in 2018 in connection with the Elgar Parishad that took place in Pune on 31 December, 2017. Caste violence erupted the day after the event and police have charged the organisers with having Maoist links.