Responding to allegations it has withdrawn cases against right-wing leader and the main suspect in Koregaon-Bhima violence Sambhaji Bhide, Maharashtra government has denied taking any such step.
Minister for Home (State) Deepak Kesarkar clarified the cases against the former Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh's (RSS) member are related to the agitation following the release of the Hindi film Jodhaa Akbar and have nothing to do with the Koregaon-Bhima violence of 2018. “The cases (as is being claimed) withdrawn were disposed in January 2017. The violence at Koregaon Bhima took place the same month in 2018. Please tell me how are the two connected (the violence and the cases)? We have not withdrawn a single case in connection with the Koregaon Bhima violence,” Mr. Kesarkar told The Hindu .
An RTI by Mumbai-based activist Shakeel Ahmed Shaikh has revealed total of three cases against Bhide and suspected members of the Shiv Pratishthan Hindustan, were withdrawn in 2017. This was done while dropping charges against another 41 members of the Bhide-led organisation. The RTI activist said cases against Bhide were withdrawn by including him in the list of the ‘non political, common’ person. “If only the government had not taken this action to withdraw cases, Bhide could not have done what he did at Koregaon-Bhima. What is the role and interest of the Maharashtra government in this? The state government must explain,” he told The Hindu .
The RTI response revealed the first FIR against Bhide and associate Hanumant Pawar was filed for unlawful assembly, disobeying public order after the release of the film Jodhaa Akbar. Another 92 accused were added along with Bhide in the second FIR for rioting, stone pelting causing injury to the police men on February, 28, 2008. A third FIR names Bhide as the co-accused along with 40 others.
The RTI activist claimed another three cases under various sections of Bombay Police Act and the Indian Penal Code (IPC) were withdrawn. But no information was provided for these dating to 2010 in the RTI response.
“We yet don’t know what these cases were filed for in 2010. But they were withdrawn and disposed in 2017 while last hearing took place in 2017,” Mr Shaikh said. The information could not be independently verified time of going to press.
Earlier, the RTI had sought information on the number of cases withdrawn against political leaders and individuals since 2008. Officials of the state Home Department said there are a total of 1.46 lakh minor and old cases which are likely to be withdrawn following a Cabinet decision on August 30, 2016. The cases were termed ‘ineffective’ and it was decided to withdraw them under Sections 288 and 321 of CrPC.
“These involved cases related to participation in political or social agitations. A committee under Finance Minister Sudhir Mungantiwar had scrutinised and carefully finalised the list of cases in 2017. Subsequently seven government resolutions were issued in this regard,” said a senior state official.
