NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar has stated that the history of Koregaon Bhima, located in Maharashtra's Pune district, is marked by the sacrifices made by its people but some communal elements are trying to wipe it out. Violence erupted the day after the Elgar Parishad conclave was held on December 31, 2017, in Pune to commemorate the 1818 battle of Koregaon Bhima, where a British army comprised of Dalits defeated the Peshwas.
In February 2018, the Maharashtra government established the Koregaon Bhima Inquiry Commission, headed by former high court Chief Justice JN Patel, to investigate the violence. Speaking at a function on Monday, where advocate Rahul Makhare, representing some witnesses before the commission, joined the NCP (SP), Pawar remarked that the violence had created unrest in both the state and the country.
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“One day, I received summons to be present before the commission. During the cross-examination, some people attempted to force me to say certain things. The history of Koregaon Bhima is a history of people who sacrificed their lives. But some communal elements are trying to wipe out that history,” he claimed.
“Today, the rulers are trying to pose a threat to the Constitution given to us by Babasaheb Ambedkar,” the former Union minister said, adding it was leaders from the BJP who claimed their party would change the Constitution if it got 400 seats in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.