Protest at Bhima Koregaon results in a death, many injuries

Maharashtra : Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has assured a strict judicial inquiry into the violence at Bhima Koregaon which left one person dead and many more injured. Fadnavis has also assured a CID inquiry and compensation of Rs 10 lakh to the family of the deceased.

One person was killed in stone-pelting and violent clashes that marred an event to mark the 200th anniversary of the Bhima Koregaon battle near Pune.

According to an Indian Express report, the deceased was identified as Rahul Phatangale from Sanaswadi, about 30 kms from Pune. A murder case has been lodged at Shikrapur police station.

About 40 vehicles were also damaged in stone-pelting and 10 vehicles were set ablaze by a mob on the Pune-Ahmednagar highway on 1 January. Section 144 of the IPC, prohibiting unlawful assembly of people, was already imposed in the area.

In the Bhima Koregaon battle that took place in 1818, the British Army comprising Dalits had defeated upper-caste Peshwas.

Dalit leader Jignesh Mevani also attended the ‘Elgaar Parishad’ in Pune to commemorate the 'victory battle'. The event was also attended by Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula’s mother, Radhika Vemula, and his brother Raja Vemula.

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