Judge tells jailers to provide books to activists held in Bhima-Koregaon case

Pune: Provide all books to activists arrested in connection with the Bhima-Koregaon riots, save for objectionable ones and don’t send activists to court to take permission, the Judge of a special Pune court told jail authorities Thursday.

The activists arrested in connection with the riots had complained to the Judge that they were not provided books despite the order from the court.

Judge K.D. Vadane of the Pune special court on Thursday heard the various complaints the activists had put forth against jail authorities and the police.

Sudha Bhardwaj, Surendra Gadling, Mahesh Raut, Sudhir Dhawale, Arun Ferreira, Vernon Gonsalves, Varavara Rao and Rona Wilson were produced in court Thursday. All of them had requested various books to read from their advocates. For example, Gadling in September asked for books on the IPC, CrPC, Information Act and four more books of law.

Despite the court order in the same month and Gadling’s lawyers handing over the books to jail authorities, the jail authorities did not give him the books. The same happened with Raut, Ferreira and Rao.

Judge Vadane asked Dnaneshar Kharat, Yerwada jail police inspector, to handover all the books to them and ask the activists to go to court in case the books were objectionable.

Activists had also complained that they were not being provided blankets, clothes and medicines by the jail authorities.

The Judge ordered the jail authorities to give them blankets and medicines as directed by the doctors and the court.

All activists have written a letter to Chandrashekhar Ravan of the Bhim Army, explaining how they have been implicated falsely of connection with Maoists.

The activists have asked Ravan to explain to the people that they are not involved in this.