NIA dropped Bhima probe bid in 2019, backed police
NEW STANCE? Pune Police convinced federal agency its progress was adequate
NEW DELHI: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) pushed to take over the Bhima Koregaon violence probe last year, when the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was in power in Maharashtra, but was satisfied with the progress made by the Pune Police, two senior officers told HT on Saturday, a day after the sudden transfer of the sensitive cases to the federal body sparked a political controversy.
The cases pertain to caste clashes that broke out in the village of Bhima Koregaon in Maharashtra’s Pune district on January 1, 2018 during the bicentennial celebrations of a British-era war by Dalits.
The police investigation blames a Maoist plot to destablise the state government and assassinate Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other leaders, and nine prominent activists have been arrested. Given the sensitivity of the case, in April 2019, NIA sent a proposal to the Centre to investigate the cases. The proposal was forwarded to the state government, which asked Pune Police to discuss the matter with the agency, said one of the officers quoted above.
That month, a team led by a joint commissioner-rank officer of Maharashtra Police reached NIA headquarters in Delhi and gave a detailed presentation to the agency sleuths, informing them about role of each activist, Maoists, nature of evidence both documentary and forensic, and details of charge sheets filed by then, the official said.
“After hours of discussion, the NIA top brass was satisfied and even congratulated the police for collecting evidence which will stand the scrutiny in the court of law and secure the conviction,” the second officer added. After this meeting, NIA did not push for taking over the probe. The Centre allowed Pune Police to continue with it.
But on Friday, the Union home ministry transferred the probe to the federal agency using its powers under section 6 (5) of the NIA Act, which allows the anti-terror
body to take over probe in a scheduled offence “suo motu”.
Unlike 2019, the state government – which is now ruled by a three-party Opposition alliance led by the Shiv Sena – was not kept in the loop. Under the NIA Act, the Centre doesn’t need to inform the state government to transfer cases to the agency, but legal experts differ over the stage and manner in which cases are transferred.
The NIA or the Union home ministry did not comment on the issue. After the January 2018 violence, the then BJP-led government had backed the Pune Police probe that expanded to several cities, and a number of top leaders had commended the police for ferreting out “urban naxals” -- a reference to alleged overground Leftist extremists.
But a change in power in the state late last year dramatically altered the government’s views on the probe. Last November, the
three-party Maharashtra Vikas Aghadai -- comprising the Shiv Sena, the Nationalist Congress Party and the Congress -replaced the BJP-led government in Maharashtra. Soon after, some leaders from the Congress and NCP demanded a re-look at the Bhima Koregaon violence cases, saying the Pune Police had mishandled the probe.
The state government even announced a review of the less-serious cases, under which hundreds of people had been arrested in 2018, but steered clear of the high-profile cases involving alleged Maoist violence. A few weeks ago, NCP chief Sharad Pawar asked the state government’s home department to form an SIT in the case to look at the probe. On Thursday, Maharashtra Dy CMAjit Pawar and home minister Anil Deshmukh met senior police officials in Mumbai to review the cases.
UNION HOME MINISTRY TRANSFERRED THE PROBE TO THE FEDERAL AGENCY USING POWERS UNDER SEC 6 (5) OF THE NIA ACT
MUMBAI/NEWDELHI: The Maharashtra government intensified its attack on the Centre on Saturday as the National Investigation Agency (NIA) took over the probe into the Bhima Koregaon violence, with the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) accusing the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of trying to cover up the previous state government’s wrongdoing in the case.
The Union home ministry formally directed the central agency to take over the investigation from the Pune Police on Saturday, a day after a political decision was made for the move, two senior officials said on condition of anonymity.
On January 1, 2018, peaceful protesters were attacked at Bhima Koregaon by an unidentified group of men who torched vehicles, ransacked shops and sparked violence that left one dead and at least 40 people injured.
Hundreds of thousands of people gather at Bhima Koregaon every year to mark the anniversary of an 1818 war between the British and the Peshwa. Many Dalit leaders believe the war was won by the British with the help of Dalit soldiers in the regiment, who defeated a large army of the Peshwa, who were said to have instituted oppressive caste practices.
The police have said that provocative speeches at Elgar Parishad conclave in Pune on December 31, 2017, led to the violence, and Maoists were behind the conclave. They later arrested several Left-leaning activists including Telugu poet Varavara Rao and Sudha Bharadwaj for alleged links to Maoists.
On Saturday, the Maharashtra Congress and the NCP alleged that the sudden move by the home ministry to transfer the probe substantiated the “conspiracy” by the BJP. The NCP also alleged that the Centre’s move was aimed at covering up the wrongdoings of the previous BJPled government in Maharashtra.
The NCP, Congress and Shiv Sena tied up to form the government in Maharashtra after last year’s assembly elections. While the BJP emerged as the singlelargest party in the state polls, it fell out with its ally Shiv Sena over sharing power and failed to form a ruling combine in Maharashtra.
“Sudden taking over of Bhima Koregaon riot case by NIA after Maha Vikas Aghadi govt started reinvestigation into inquiry of Pune police, clearly substantiates conspiracy of BJP. Why it took 2 yrs for NIA to find that case is fit under its jurisdiction? Strongly condemn!” Maharashtra Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant said in a tweet.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, too, attacked the Centre over the move. “Bhima-Koregaon is a symbol of resistance that the Government’s NIA stooges can never erase,” he tweeted.
NCP spokesperson and state minority affairs minister Nawab Malik described the decision as a “cover-up” by the Centre to hide the wrongdoings of the previous BJP-led government in the state.
The case was being probed by the Pune Police and the Centre’s decision to hand over the probe to the NIA on Friday came a day after the police briefed Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar and home minister Anil Deshmukh about the status of the probe.
NCP chief Sharad Pawar has previously demanded that a Special Investigation Team (SIT) be set up under a retired judge to probe the action taken by Pune Police in the case.
On Saturday, Pawar alleged that the Union government transferred the probe to the NIA fearing that a fresh investigation by the new Maharashtra government would expose dubious actions of the previous BJP-led dispensation. He said the case was transferred to the central agency days after he wrote to chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, alleging that the violence was the result of a conspiracy hatched by the then BJP-led government with the help of police.
“The deputy chief minister (Ajit Pawar) and home minister (Anil Deshmukh) called a meeting (of police officials) to know the factual position. But within fourfive hours of that, the Centre handed over the probe to its agency,” the NCP chief said.
Former Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, however, welcomed the Centre’s decision to hand over the case to the NIA. Fadnavis, who held the home portfolio when the incident took place, said the state police had unearthed a huge network of “urban Naxals’ and submitted all the evidence gathered to the court. “The Supreme Court had also supported the police action,” the BJP leader said.
The Uddhav Thackeray-led Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi government was trying to mislead people about the probe for votebank politics, he alleged.
“Attempts are being made to lower the morale of the police and put them under pressure. The decision to hand over the probe to NIA is appropriate,” he said.