The case dates back to 2018 when violence had erupted near Bhima Koregaon in Pune district on January 01, 2018 – when Dalit groups were celebrating two hundred years of a war fought between Dalits and Maratha where Dalits had emerged victorious.

All IndiaWritten by Purva ChitnisUpdated: January 23, 2020 08:40 ISTby

Maharashtra likely to set up SIT to probe ‘urban naxal’ cases

Bhima Koregaon Cases To Be Reviewed By Maharashtra Home Minister On Today

Anil Dekhmukh has sought a detailed report on the investigation of the Bhima Koregaon caseMumbai: 

Maharashtra Home Minister and senior NCP leader Anil Deshmukh will review the cases related to the 2018 Bhima Koregaon violence today.

Sharad Vyas Mumbai , January 23, 2020 01:26 IST Updated: January 23, 2020


Based on a letter from Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar, the Maharashtra government will soon appoint a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to relook into cases against ‘urban naxals’ for an alleged plot to assassinate Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Sources in the Maharashtra Home Department said the NCP supremo drafted a two-page letter along with a dossier on January 10, detailing the possibility of “cooked up” charges against nine activists arrested by the Pune Police in connection with the violence in Bhima Koregaon. He also termed the police action as “wrong and vengeful”. The letter was received by the Home Department on January 10.

In the letter, Mr. Pawar has requested that the SIT be headed by a retired judge and must have in its scope review of testimonies, electronic evidence and other ‘fabricated’ facts levelled against the activists, who were, as per the Pune Police charge sheet, found in possession of a letter detailing an “assassination conspiracy” against Mr. Modi.

The reliability of the ‘conspiracy’ letter be also verified, while looking into the role of senior police officer in charge of the investigations, Mr. Pawar wrote. “This is as detailed a dossier as one could draft, and gives a feeling it has been prepared with the help of several experts. We have a letter from him [Sharad Pawar] received on January 10, demanding the government set up an SIT,” said a Home Ministry official.

Home Department sources said a review of the investigations into the Elgar Parishad-Koregaon Bhima violence, will be held on Wednesday. An in principle approval to form an SIT will also be taken during the meet, senior officials said. “Tomorrow we are reviewing the investigations by the Pune Police. Not only will we find out where the investigation stands, We will also try and also find out what is going on in these cases. We have several representations in this regard,” Home Minister Anil Deshmukh said.

“We will think about this in connection with the Bhima Koregaon episode. Demands are being raised about forming SIT to probe the matter. We will take a review of it through our officers and decide future course,” Mr Deshmukh had said.

The case dates back to 2018 when violence had erupted near Bhima Koregaon in Pune district on January 01, 2018 – when Dalit groups were celebrating two hundred years of a war fought between Dalits and Maratha where Dalits had emerged victorious. 

But the Pune police had filed cases against activists, intellectuals who had given speeches at Elgar Parisian, which was held on December 31, 2017, that according to police had triggered violence the next day. 

The police had claimed the organisers of the meet had Naxal links. Since August and September of 2018, 10 activists have been under arrest facing trials in the cases.