Bhima Koregaon complainant hits out at Opposition

Pune (Maharashtra), Aug 31 (ANI): Tushar Damagude, the man whose complaint propelled the police to begin the Bhima Koregaon investigation which led to the arrest of five activists recently, has hit out at the opposition parties after they rallied behind the activists claiming that they are innocent.

"How come the opposition claim that? Check the background of these people. Even when the Congress-NCP was in power, these were the people who were jailed. It's unbecoming of the opposition to make such claim," Damagude said while speaking to ANI.

"People can talk about my background. Everyone has their freedom of speech, but the court only asks for evidence. For people arrested recently, you can check the list of organisations listed by Manmohan Singh government. P Chidambaram too once said urban Naxalism exists," Damagude further said.

Apart from Damagude's complaint, his picture with Bhima Koregaon accused and Hindutva leader Shambaji Bhide also grabbed headlines.

Reflecting on the same, he said, "It's not only with him. I have clicked pictures with many people around. The same picture has been used in several articles. What is the problem with that? I have my own views."

On Tuesday, the Maharashtra police conducted raids in several cities in the state and arrested five activists - Sudha Bharadwaj, Gautam Navlakha, Arun Ferreira, Vernon Gonsalves and P Varavara Rao - in connection with the Bhima Koregaon violence that broke out during the 200th anniversary of the Bhima-Koregaon battle in January this year.

However, the Supreme Court directed the Pune Police to keep the five activists under house arrest until September 6. (ANI)

This story has not been edited. It has been published as provided by ANI