Bhima Koregaon: Activist Sudha Bhardwaj sent to police custody till Nov 6

Activist Sudha Bhardwaj, an accused in the Bhima Koregaon case, was on Saturday sent to police custody till November 6 by the Pune Sessions Court.

Bhardwaj's application before Pune Sessions Court mentioned, "The applicant must be provided with condition of incarceration, bathing and toilet facilities (in police custody) which are on par with those that have been promised to Vijay Mallya."

Public Prosecutor Ujwala Pawar demanded 14-days custody for Bhardwaj; mentioning, "She is an active member of CPI (Maoist) so the activities she has done or doing for the banned organisation need to be investigated."

Earlier in the day, activists Vernon Gonsalves and Arun Ferreira, both accused in the Bhima Koregaon case, were sent to police custody till November 6 by a Pune Sessions Court.

Furthermore, the Supreme Court rejected a review petition filed by historian Romila Thapar against the verdict that refused a Special Investigation Team-led (SIT) probe into the house arrests of five activists in the case in August and allowed Maharashtra Police to continue with the investigation.

On Wednesday, the apex court declined to hold an urgent hearing over Thapar's review plea against its ruling and allowed the Maharashtra Police to continue with its probe.

Thapar, along with four other activists, had earlier filed a petition in the apex court against the house arrest of the five activists in connection to the Bhima Koregaon violence case. On September 28, the top court turned down the request and extended the house arrest.

The five activists, namely poet Vara Vara Rao, lawyer Sudha Bhardwaj, activists Arun Ferreira, Vernon Gonsalves, and Gautam Navlakha, have been under house arrest since August 29 for their alleged involvement in the violence which took place on January 1.

The five accused were arrested from various cities for their alleged involvement in the violence that erupted earlier this year during the 200th anniversary of the Bhima Koregaon battle. One person was killed and scores were injured in the clashes.