Mumbai, December 4: Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray has told a delegation of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) that his government will drop charges against Dalit activists in the Bhima Koregaon case. The delegation of NCP leaders, comprising cabinet members Jayant Patil and Chhagan Bhujbal and MLC Prakash Gajbhiye met CM Uddhav Thackeray on Tuesday, seeking withdrawal of cases filed against Dalit activists in connection with the Bhima Koregaon case. 'Urban Naxals': Who Are Being Referred to and Why is the Term Trending After Bhima Koregaon Raids?

"Law-enforcing agencies had initiated criminal proceedings against activists for their alleged involvement in the Bhima-Koregaon violence and the Indu Mill agitation. All of them were falsely implicated, so we requested the CM to withdraw the cases immediately, and he acceded to our request," Gajbhiye said after their meeting with Thackeray. Immediately after taking over as Chief Minister on November 28, Thackeray had ordered the state home department to withdraw cases filed against activists for protesting against the cutting of trees in Aarey Colony and those opposing the Nanar refinery in the Konkan. Bhima Koregaon Violence Was Pre-Planned, Milind Ekbote And Sambhaji Bhide Created Atmosphere That Led to Riots: Report.

The Bhima-Koregaon cases are different from the ones related to the Elgar Parishad, which was organized at Pune's Shaniwar Wada on December 31, 2017. According to the chargsheet filed by the Pune police, the Elgar Parishad had aggravated the caste-based violence in Koregaon Bhima on January 1, 2018. Nine prominent activists were arrested in the Elgar Parishad case. The chargsheet also stated that a letter recovered from one of the arrested accused revealed that a conspiracy was being framed to plan a Rajiv Gandhi like assassination to take down Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The Bhima Koregaon case is linked to violence in Pune on January 1, 2018. On the 200th anniversary of the battle of Bhima-Koregaon on January 1, a large number of people had gathered near the memorial. During the celebration, caste-based violence had broken out in which 28-year-old youth, Rahul Patangale, was killed. As many as 152 people were booked in 58 separate cases.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 04, 2019 10:25 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).