After contemplating giving a statement in both Houses of Parliament on the Koregaon Bhima incident in Maharashtra that led to widespread violence and protests, the government had a rethink and is said to have dropped the plan.
Home Minister Rajnath Singh was expected to brief the Parliament on Thursday but officials said it was decided after a meeting that the State government would do the talking instead. The Winter Session of Parliament concludes on Friday. There has been an uproar and adjournments in both the Houses of Paliament over the issue.
“The draft was prepared and the Home Minister was expected to give a statement on the subject, but the plan was dropped after receiving a report from the Maharashtra government that the situation in the State was under control. The State government is well-equipped to tackle the protests,” said a senior Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) official.
Report sent
The Maharashtra government has sent a report to the MHA, apprising it of the sequence of events that led to the protests.
“The Home Ministry and the Maharashtra government are in constant touch over the situation in the State. The Ministry has also received a factual report from the State government on the prevailing situation,” an MHA spokesperson said.
In its report, the State government is learnt to have linked Left wing extremists to the January 1 violence at Koregaon Bhima in the Pune district, where thousands of Mahars (a part of the larger Dalit community) congregated to commemorate the British victory in an Anglo-Maratha battle 200 years ago. A senior Home Ministry official said the information was provided by the State government and the MHA had not made any independent assessment.
On Thursday, Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju, while alleging that the Maharashtra incident was part of a design to target India, said in a tweet, “Please remember, Brahmin, Maratha, Rajput, Gujjar, Dalits or backwards [Backward Classes] are not on target. Caste would change with the place as India is on target.”
When asked about alleged Maoist links to the incident, Mr. Rijiju said, “I am not aware.”
On Wednesday, several parts of Maharashtra came to a standstill following a bandh called by two organisations belonging to Maratha and Dalit communities.
The battle of Koregaon Bhima was fought between the Peshwas of Maharashtra and the British in January 1818. On its 200th anniversary, individuals with saffron flags pelted stones at the Mahars. One person was killed in the subsequent clashes.
