Prominent activist named in Bhima Koregaon chargesheet

National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Friday filed a charge-sheet against eight people, including activists Gautam Navlakha and 82-year-old Father Stan Swamy, for their alleged involvement in inciting a mob to violence in Bhima Koregaon near Pune on January 1, 2018. However, the move has been opposed by the Jharkhand government saying he is a man who always raised his voice for the poor, deprived and tribal.

Ranchi: The violence which took place at Bhima Koregaon in Pune two years ago, Maharashtra, has now started haunting Jharkhand as well. Stan Swamy, a famous social worker, has been mentioned as a Maoist in the charge sheet of the National Investigation Agency (NIA). Meanwhile, the government of Jharkhand is openly opposing the arrest of Stan Swamy.

In Pune’s Bhima Koregaon violence case, the National Investigation Agency or NIA has filed the charge sheet, which runs into 10,000 pages. In the charge sheet, Stan Swamy has been depicted as an active member of the Persecuted Prisoners Solidarity Committee (PPSC), a frontal organisation of CPI-Maoists.

He has also been shown in the charge sheet as the convener of PPSC. The charge sheet claims that Stan Swami was constantly in touch with CPI-Maoists of Maharashtra. He has also been charged with collecting funds for the Maoist cadres. A team of NIA, led by an inspector level officer Ajay Kumar Kadam, arrested Father Stan Swamy on the night of October 8 from his residence at Bagraich, Namkum area. On Friday, he was flown to Mumbai.

A team of Maharashtra Police had earlier on August 28, 2018 searched the room of Father Stan Swami. On July 12 last year, an eight-member team of the Maharashtra Police raided the house of Stan Swamy in Ranchi. The police team searched his room for three and a half hours. His computer’s hard disk and Internet modem was confiscated by the police team.

The passwords of his E-mail and Facebook were changed. His e-mail and social media accounts were also confiscated so that the data could be examined. An NIA team had also come from Delhi on August 6. The team questioned him for about three hours. Only recently, NIA’s Mumbai team had sent a summons to him for questioning but Stan Swamy requested the NIA through an e-mail to allow him to appear online through video conferencing as he was not keeping good health.

GOVERNMENT WITH STAN SWAMY

The Government of Jharkhand is openly opposing the arrest of Stan Swamy. In a tweet, Chief Minister Hemant Soren asked what message the BJP Government at the Center wants to give by arresting Father Stan Swamy, who has always raised the voice of the poor, deprived and Tribal. Soren had termed the move as an act of stubbornness to suppress the voice of opposition.

Jharkhand Finance Minister Rameshwar Oraon has said the Central government is taking action to harass intellectuals living in different parts of the country in the name of urban Naxalism. He said that Father Stan Swamy has been living in Ranchi for the last 25 years and is engaged in the upliftment of the Tribal community. In such a situation, an attempt is being made to trap him in the name of urban Naxalism.

He said that even earlier, a team of the Maharashtra Police raided his house at the behest of the BJP-led government at the Centre. Congress’ state unit spokesperson Alok Kumar Dubey, Lal Kishorenath Shahdev and Rajesh Gupta also alleged that the Central government was misusing investigative agencies. Meanwhile, the protest against the arrest of Swamy has been started by many social organisations on the streets. Many social workers and Tribal leaders on Friday staged a protest at the famous Albert Ekka Chowk in Ranchi, demanding the release of Stan Swamy.

STAN SWAMY AND CONTROVERSIES

Stan Swamy hogged the controversy over the movement of Pathalgadi, which started in 2017. He was accused of inciting people to indulge in stone-pelting in Khunti. The police had charged him with treason, promotion of Pathalgadi movement through social media, inciting people against the government and opposing the government schemes. Police filed a case against him on July 26, 2018, at Khunti Police station under different sections of the IT Act.

The SP of Khunti on January 25, 2019, had ordered the arrest of all accused including Stan Swamy, Babita Kachhap, Sukumar Soren, Viras Nag, Thomas Runda, Walter Kandulna, Ghanshyam Biruli, Dharamkisho Kullu, Sama Tudu, Gulshan Tudu, Mukti Tirkey, Rakesh Roshankiro, Ajal Kandula, Anupam, Sumit Lakra, Ajangya Birua, Vikas Koda, Vinod Kerketta, Aloka Kujur, Vinod Kumar and Theodar Kido. On October 21, 2019, the police attacked his house. However, when the new government was formed in 2019, the sedition case was withdrawn.

WHO IS STAN SWAMY?

Originally from Kerala, Stan Swamy is a well-known social worker of Jharkhand. Stan, who is 84 years now, has been living in Jharkhand for the past 25 years. He has a house in Bagraich under Namkum police station area of Ranchi. He works for Tribal and other people from the underprivileged sections of the society.

Stan Swamy has always been vocal in favour of the Tribal. He has been very critical of the government. He has constantly raised questions about why the government is not implementing the 5th Schedule of the Constitution, which directs the formation of a Tribal Advisory Council in tribal areas, which will act as an advisor to the Governor of the state for the development of Tribal.

WHAT IS BHIMA KOREGAON CASE?

The East India Company had defeated the army of the Peshwa on January 1, 1818 with the help of the people of the Mahar community at Bhima Koregaon near Pune in Maharashtra. Every year, the occasion is celebrated as the symbol of the valour of Dalits. In 2018, exactly a day before the commemorative event, the Elgar Parishad organised a rally. It has been alleged that during this rally, conspiracies were hatched to incite the violence. Caste violence erupted on January 1, 2018, due to alleged inflammatory speeches made at the rally.

The Elgar Parishad was also accused of plotting to assassinate Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) in January 2020 took up the investigation into the violence at Bhima Koregaon, alleged conspiracy to assassinate Prime Minister Modi on behalf of urban Naxalites.

The NIA has filed a charge sheet against eight people including Stan Swamy in this case. The other accused in the case are Delhi University’s Prof Honey Babu, social activist Navlakha, Goa Institute of Management’s Prof Anand Teltumbde and three members of Kabir Kala Manch -- Jyoti Jagdeep, Ramesh Gaichor and Sagar Gorkhe. In this case, accused Navlakha is said to have links with Pakistan’s spy agency ISI.