As Bhima Koregaon case completes its fourth anniversary, State reprisal is writ large in its twists and turns
Published on: 8 June 2022, 02:28 pm
Justice continues to be elusive to those arrested in the case, with legal remedies not proving to be effective so far.
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AS we have completed four years since the first arrest in the Elgar Parishad case, a quick recap of how 16 renowned human rights activists were jailed may be useful.
There is much more than meets the eye. Maybe we will have a few answers after the trial ends, but not all. It would be difficult to say what exactly caused the arrest of these 16 eminent persons, but we can definitely relook at the turn of events and try to understand what really happened.
Elgar Parishad and its immediate aftermath
Towards the end of 2014, Maharashtra came under the rule of a Bharatiya Janta Party ('BJP')-led coalition government wherein Shiv Sena was one of the partners. The Chief Ministership as also the Home Ministry was retained by the BJP's Devendra Fadnavis. As a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh ('RSS') follower, he was able to leapfrog many stalwarts from his party.
The then prevailing social unrest in Maharashtra was a result of several factors. To name just a few: long-pending demands of farmers for loan waivers, the demand for reservation of the Marathas; the Kopardi rape case where Dalits were accused of committing rape on a Maratha girl, and unending caste atrocities against Dalits — these widened the gap among the Bahujans.
“On June 7, 2018, a press conference was held by the police. It claimed to have unravelled a big conspiracy to assassinate the Prime Minister of India. It said that it found incriminating material as per 'secret information', from the electronic devices seized from the detained activists.
What fuelled the feeling of enmity among Marathas and non-Marathas were the "Muk Morchas" and the unprecedented show of strength by this community. Though many communities initially came forward in support, certain RSS-sponsored organisations ensured that hatred kept brewing. Certain organisations declared their counter-morchas against muk morchas, which then simply added fuel to fire.