The Supreme Court on Wednesday declined to hold an urgent hearing of a review petition filed by historian Romila Thapar against its verdict that refused a Special Investigation Team-led (SIT) probe into house-arrests of five activists in Bhima Koregaon case.
The court, in its verdict, had also allowed Maharashtra Police to continue with the investigation.
Thapar along with four other activists had earlier filed a petition in the top court against the house-arrest of the five activists in Bhima Koregaon violence.
On September 28, the Supreme Court had turned down the request of the petitioners to set up an SIT to probe into the case and extended the activists' house arrest for four weeks.
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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 many were injured in the clashes.
The Maharashtra police had arrested the rights activists on August 28 in connection with an FIR lodged following a conclave -- 'Elgaar Parishad' -- held on December 31 last year that had later triggered violence at Koregaon-Bhima village.
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The apex court had said on September 19 that it would look into the case with a hawk's eye as liberty cannot be "sacrificed at the altar of conjectures".
It had told the Maharashtra government that there should be a clear-cut distinction between opposition and dissent on one hand and attempts to create disturbance, law and order problems or overthrow the government on the other.
They were arrested under IPC Section 153 (A), which relates to promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place or birth, residence, language and committing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony.
Some other sections of the IPC were also pressed, along with the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, for their "alleged naxal activities", an official said, without elaborating.
(ANI)
