On 1st January 1818, a small battalion of 800 men including many Mahars, a Dalit sub-caste defeated a massive army of over 25,000 men headed by Peshwa Bajirao II. Although the battalion was headed by the British, the locals of Koregaon saw it as a victory against their immediate oppressors, the Peshwa. Dalits under the brahminical rule of Peshwa were forced to carry a spittoon on their neck and a broom on the back so that even their dust couldn’t pollute Brahmins. Every year, on the first of January, thousands of Dalits from across the country gather in the village of Koregaon in Pune to commemorate this battle. On 1st January 2018, a meeting of all progressive activists and intellectuals was held to observe the 200th anniversary of the Bhima Koregaon battle.
Hindutva leaders Milind Ekbote and Sambhaji Bhide had instigated a mob against the Dalit procession, who attacked the Dalits at the procession near the Vijay Stambh after which an ugly violence broke out. FIRs were registered on the Hindutva leaders who instigated this violence, however, no action was taken against them.
Following this, sixteen people, including progressive lawyers, academics, intellectuals, activists and trade unionists popularly known as the Bhima Koregaon 16 (BK-16) were booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), a draconian anti- terrorism law used to suppress dissent, for allegedly conspiring to overthrow the government and helping to strengthen the CPI(Maoist). Most of the activists are being detained without a trial, a common trend in UAPA cases where the process itself becomes the punishment. The case was taken over by the National Investigation Agency(NIA) in 2020. The evidence that they relied upon, which were files in activists’ computers, including a letter mentioning a plot to assassinate Prime Minister Modi, was found to have been planted by hacking their devices by planting of malwares remotely as per the report of Arsenal Consulting, a digital forensic firm.
Fr. Stan Swamy, a Jesuit priest and an Adivasi rights activist who is part of the BK16 was denied timely medical treatment in detention, which led to his death in July 2021. We must not forget that the activists continue to languish without trial for being vocally critical of the fascist BJP government. Some are out on bail, some udner house arrest, and some are still behind bars. We must actively demand the release of the activists and the repeal of such undemocratic laws that are used to quash dissent.
