Bhima Koregaon: NIA files charge-sheet against eight, accuses them of waging war against state
Mumbai: The NIA on Friday filed a supplementary charge-sheet against eight people, including activists Gautam Navlakha and 82-year-old Father Stan Swamy, for their alleged involvement in inciting a mob to violence in Bhima Koregaon near Pune on January 1, 2018 and accused them of waging war against the state, officials said.
The 10,000-page charge-sheet, filed before a court here, brings in both the threat of Maoists for an urban revolution and Pakistan's ISI, alleging that the eight were involved in spreading the ideology of Maoism/Naxalism and encouraging lawless activities.
The National Investigation Agency said its probe showed a "systematic network of Maoists that operated for the supply of arms and ammunition and had a close nexus with other banned proscribed organisations within and outside India". Navlakha is alleged to have links with Pakistan's ISI, according to the NIA.
Ahead of filing the chargesheet, the NIA arrested Swamy, who said he has never been to Bhima Koregaon, from his home in Ranchi on Thursday evening and brought him to Mumbai where he was produced before a court on Friday and remanded to judicial custody till October 23.
Swamy, the sixteenth person to be arrested in the case, is possibly the oldest person to be charged under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), officials said.
Barring one person Milind Teltumbde who is absconding all other named in the charge-sheet are in judicial custody.
Besides Navlakha and Swamy, the others named in the charge-sheet are Delhi University associate professor Hany Babu, Goa Institute of Management professor Anand Teltumbde, and Jyoti Jagtap, Sagar Gorkhe and Ramesh Gaichor, activists of the Bhima Koregaon Shaurya Din Prerna Abhiyaan group.
They were arrested during the course of the investigation into the violence on January 1, 2018 in which one person was killed and several injured after clashes at the 200th anniversary celebrations of the Battle of Koregaon near Pune.
Pune Police has alleged the violence was caused following provocative speeches by members of the group Elgar Parishad the day before on December 31, 2017.
Terming the CPI(Maoist) a terrorist organisation, the charge-sheet said the eight conspired with other accused to further the group's ideology, abetted violence, brought into hatred and incited disaffection towards the government established by law and promoted enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, caste and community .
According to the NIA, the strategy and tactics adopted by Maoists to carry out an urban revolution with their frontal outfits has also been revealed during the investigation.
Besides, funding activities of Maoist cadres and their sympathisers to carry out Maoist work in rural as well urban areas have come to the fore, it said.
This is the third charge-sheet filed by an investigating agency in the case. Pune Police had earlier filed charge-sheets in this case on December 15, 2018 and February 21, 2019 against 15 people.
The NIA said the role of various frontal organisations of the CPI (Maoist) emerged during the investigation. The agency alleged that incriminating documents were recovered from the accused. These include discreet communications with other Maoist cadres over the conspiracy in the violence at Bhima Koregaon, the charge-sheet stated.
Various documents on the mobilisation of Maoist cadres against the constitutionally established government, information on the movement of security forces with the intention of causing heavy damage to the state were also found, it said.
Detailing individual charges, the NIA said Milind Teltumbde organised training camps for imparting weapons training to the other accused.
Navlakha's active role and involvement was revealed in secret communications with the CPI (Maoist) cadres and he was assigned the task of uniting intellectuals against the government, the charge-sheet alleged.
"His links with the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) also came to fore," an NIA spokesperson said.
Anand Teltumbde was one of the convenors of "the Bhima Koregaon Shaurya Din Prerna Abhiyan" and was present at the December 31 event of the Elgar Parishad.
He is alleged to have played an active role with other Maoist cadres and received funds from them for carrying out the activities.
Hany Babu Is alleged to have been instrumental in organising visits of foreign journalists to CPI (Maoist) areas. He was also in contact with the banned terrorist organisation Kanglepak Communist Party (KCP) of Manipur and made efforts for the release of convicted accused G N Saibaba on the directions of the CPI (Maoist) and also raised funds for the purpose, the NIA said.
The agency alleged that Sagar Gorkhe, Ramesh Gaichor and Jyoti Jagtap are trained cadres of the CPI (Maoist) and members of its frontal organisation Kabir Kala Manch.
Swamy, the NIA claimed, was also actively involved in the activities of the CPI (Maoist).
The NIA alleged that he was in contact with "conspirators" -- Sudhir Dhawale, Rona Wilson, Surendra Gadling, Arun Ferreira, Vernon Gonsalves, Hany Babu, Shoma Sen, Mahesh Raut, Varavara Rao, Sudha Bharadwaj, Gautam Navlakha and Anand Teltumbde -- to further the group's activities.
The agency said Swamy had also received funds through an associate for furthering the agenda. Besides, he is convenor of the Persecuted Prisoners Solidarity Committee (PPSC), a frontal organisation of the CPI(Maoist), the officials claimed.
Swamy's lawyer Sharif Shaikh said his client was produced physically before the court. "The NIA did not seek his custody. He is aged. We will peruse the papers and file for a bail," he said.
Ahead of his arrest in the evening, Swamy posted a video on Thursday morning saying the NIA had been interrogating him and had questioned him for 15 hours during a span of five days.
"Now they want me to go to Mumbai, which I have said that I won't go," he said, citing the pandemic. The video, posted on YouTube, was recorded two days before his arrest.
"I have never been to Bhima Koregaon for which I am being made an accused," he said.
"...what is happening to me is not something unique happening to me alone, it is a broader process taking place all over the country. We all are aware how prominent intellectuals, lawyers, writers, poets, activists, student leaders are all put in jail because they have expressed their dissent or raised questions about the ruling powers of India," Swamy said in the video.
He said he is part of "the process" and in a way happy to be so because he is not a silent spectator and is part of the game.
"I am ready to pay the price whatever be it," Swamy said.
The NIA took up the investigation of the case on January 24, 2020. It said it brought reliable, material and documentary evidence on record through "meticulous, scientific and detailed analysis of more than 10,000 pages of communications made by various accused".
"NIA's investigation revealed that the tentacles of conspiracy were not only spread throughout the country but also extended beyond India," an NIA spokesperson said.
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Trump arrives in China for talks with Xi
Beijing (PTI): US President Donald Trump arrived in China on Wednesday for a three-day state visit during which he will discuss a host of global issues, including the Iran war, with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Trump, who is visiting China at the invitation of President Xi, was received by Chinese Vice President Han Zheng at the airport.
The leaders of the world's two largest economies will hold their seventh face-to-face talks. They last met face-to-face in October 2025 in Busan, South Korea.
The US President arrived in China on his second visit in nine years to clinch a trade deal, to end the frictions over tariffs that affected its over USD 525 billion exports to the US.
Trump, who is accompanied by top CEOs, was the last US president to visit China in 2017, during his first term.
President Trump would have a bilateral meeting with Xi on Thursday, US Principal Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly said on Sunday.
The two leaders will meet again on Friday for a bilateral tea and working lunch, she said, adding that the US plans to host the Chinese leader for a reciprocal visit later this year.
Ahead of Trump's arrival, Chinese Vice-Premier He Lifeng and Scott Bessent completed the final round of trade negotiations in South Korea, details of which are not known.
The talks focused on trade and tariffs, Artificial Intelligence and technology, Taiwan and US' arms sales to Taipei, Iran and West Asia security and rare earths and supply chains.
Trump's schedule included a visit to the Temple of Heaven, a complex of imperial temples where emperors would pray for a good harvest.
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Ahead of his departure for Beijing, Trump told the media in Washington he would be talking with Xi about trade more than anything else.
He plans to sign more deals with China to buy more American food and aircraft. The two countries also plan to set up a Board of Trade with China to address differences between the countries.
From a trade point of view, China looks to reap a rich harvest as Trump is accompanied by top CEOs of US multinational giants, including Tesla chief Elon Musk and Apple CEO Tim Cook, who have well-entrenched business in China.
Apple has regained the top spot in China's competitive smartphone market as of early 2026, driven by a 28 per cent surge in iPhone shipments.
In April, Tesla's China-made vehicle sales (including exports) reached 79,478, a 36 per cent year-over-year increase, signalling a production rebound.
The top US business leaders will be allowed to mingle with their Chinese counterparts at an exclusive international business club, according to Chinese officials.
The global focus on the summit, however, would be on any possible outcome that could end the US-Israeli-Iran war and end the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
Ahead of Trump's visit, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi made his first visit to Beijing after the war and held talks with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi.
The US watched his visit closely as China is the largest importer of Iranian oil and shares strategic defence ties with Tehran, and has considerable influence over Iran.
After talks with Araghchi, Wang called on Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz as soon as possible, even as it appreciated Tehran's commitment not to develop nuclear weapons, a prime demand of Trump to end the war.
Commenting on Wang-Araghchi talks, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said, "I hope the Chinese tell him what he needs to be told. And that is what you are doing in the Strait, which is causing you to be globally isolated. You're the bad guy in this."
China's anxieties over the Gulf war increased, especially after Trump imposed a blockade of Iranian ports, restricting Iran's oil exports to China.
Bert Hoffman, former World Bank country director for China, said China wants the Iran war to end because it has many partners in the region, including Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Kuwait. "So they don't like to see wars, they like to have stability," he said.
In its editorial on Trump's visit, state-run Global Times said Xi has held multiple telephone conversations and meetings with him, which have helped correct the course of the bilateral relationship and steer it clear of hidden dangers at critical moments.
For China-US relations to truly stabilise and improve in the future, the most fundamental step is to fully and faithfully implement the important consensus reached by both leaders, it said.
From China's point of view, the Taiwan issue was expected to figure prominently in the talks.
Last week, China's Foreign Minister Wang told US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, during their telephone talks, that the US should make the right choice about the self-ruled Taiwan.
China claims Taiwan as part of its own and has been ramping up military pressure on the island with periodic military drills around the island.
VIDEO | Beijing: US President Donald Trump arrives in China for high stakes meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
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