I/IV. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/sambhaji-bhide-and-milind-ekbote-the-two-who-brought-mumbai-to-a-halt/articleshow/62347882.cms?utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=TOIMobile
Sambhaji Bhide and Milind Ekbote: The two who brought Mumbai to a halt Makarand Gadgil and Alka Dhupkar | Mumbai Mirror | Updated: Jan 3, 2018, 12:19 IST Sambhaji Bhide and Milind Ekbote: The two who brought Mumbai to a halt MUMBAI: At the center of all the trouble Mumbai faced on Tuesday and the spectre of a complete shut-down it faces today are two men who could view the state-wide chaos+ they have caused as something of a trophy. This is not the first time Sambhaji Bhide, 85, better known as Bhide Guruji, and Milind Ekbote, 56, have stirred the 'us vs them' pot. In 2008, Bhide was in national spotlight when his followers ransacked movie halls protesting against the release of movie Jodha-Akbar. In 2009, he brought his hometown Sangli to a standstill when a Ganesh pandal was denied permission to put up an artiste's impression of the assassination of Adil Shah's army commander Afjal Khan by Shivaji Maharaj. Ekbote has 12 cases of rioting, trespassing, criminal intimidation, and attempts to spread enmity between two communities against him. He has been convicted in five of these cases. During his first term as a BJP corporator in Pune between 1997 and 2002, he had come to fisticuffs with a Muslim corporator over the construction of Haj house. This time, Bhide and Ekbote have ranged the Hindutva forces against the Dalits in the state. They achieved this by desecrating the samadhi of a Mahar named Govind Gaikwad who is credited with performing Shivaji Maharaj's son Sambhajiraje Bhosale's funeral when nobody else would touch the body as it could have invited the Mughals' wrath. Bhide and Ekbote's beef with the legend of Govind Gaikwad is that it's a narrative spun by the Britishers. They believe that Sambhajiraje Bhosale's last rites were performed by Marathas and the duo has demanded a governmentsponsored study to establish the facts. The timing of their ransacking of the samadhi located in a village named Wadhu in Pune district was telling. They desecrated the Samadhi on December 29, knowing fully well that thousands of Dalits would gather on January 1at a nearby village called Bhima-Koregaon to celebrate the anniversary of the defeat of the Peshva army at the hands of British forces comprising mainly Dalit soldiers. The riots that started in Bhima-Koregaon as Hindutva activists led a procession to the village, where Dalits had gathered for the annual commemoration of the battle, spread soon to Pune and have since engulfed the entire state. Though an FIR has been lodged against both Bhide and Ekbote, nobody is surprised that they have not been arrested yet. Both have deep links with the RSS and wield considerable clout within the ruling dispensation in the state and at the Centre. In 2014, when Narendra Modi launched his campaign to become the prime minister, he visited Bhide at his house in Sangli and touched his feet. Later, at a public rally Modi declared: "I did not come to Sangli on my own, but I was given orders by Bhide Guruji to visit your city and here I am." Ekbote's entire family is associated with the RSS. He was a BJP corporator in Pune from 1997 to 2002. Denied a ticket, he fought as an independent for a second term and won. He lost the corporation election in 2007 and to stay relevant floated Hindu Ekta Manch the same year. The Manch has since been at the forefront of anti-Valentine's Day protests. In 2014, he contested assembly elections on a Shiv Sena ticket and lost. Ekbote's sister-in-law Jyotsna Ekbote is a sitting BJP corporator in Pune. Bhide has a huge fan following in Sangli, Kolhapur and Satara, especially among the youth. Fighting fit even at 85, he walks barefoot, rides a bicycle around the town, travels in state-run buses, and doesn't own a house. An M.Sc. in nuclear physics and a gold medalist, Bhide was a professor of physics at Pune's Fergusson College before he joined the RSS as a pracharak. In the 1980s, he floated his own organisation called Shiva Pratishthan Hindustan to spread the message the life of Shivaji Maharaj. His talks on the lives of Shivaji Maharaj and his heir Sambhaji Maharaj often brim with hatred for a minority community. TOP COMMENT Bhide Guruji and Milind Ekbote, salute to you sir for presenting the facts of the history. Dalits are celebrating victory of British army, what a shame. Dalits and Muslims are backstabbers to Bharatmata. Bish Lamb Both Bhide and Ekbote till December 29 were not known to be anti-Dalit. Prakash Ambedkar, grandson of Dr Babasheb Ambedkar, expressed surprise at the duo's involvement in the desecration of Gaikwad's samadhi. In a statement issued on Tuesday, Ekbote said: "I am saddened by the inconvenience caused to Dalits due to rioting after their visit to Bhima-Koregaon and we condemn the act of rioting." He added that his organisation considers Dr. Ambedkar and Lahuji Vastad (19th century Dalit warrior who fought against Brits) as icons and that a large number of Dalit activists are a part of Hindu Ekta Manch. II/IV. http://www.firstpost.com/india/maharashtra-bandh-br-ambedkars-great-grandson-tells-firstpost-that-pune-violence-was-pre-planned-4285409.html Maharashtra bandh: BR Ambedkar's great-grandson tells Firstpost that Pune violence was pre-planned India Vaibhav Shah Jan 03, 2018 17:02:13 IST On Monday, violence broke out at an event in Pune organised to mark the 200th anniversary of the Bhima-Koregaon battle, and at the time of writing, its repercussions are still being felt across Maharashtra. And now, it transpires that the leader of the Bhariapa Bahujan Mahasangh (BBM), Prakash Ambedkar’s son Sujat, was given a heads-up about impending unrest that was going to be caused by two ‘right-wing groups’ from a friend, activist Malhar Takle on Saturday. Sujat told Firstpost, “I received a message on 30 December from Malhar in which the two right-wing group, who would be causing trouble during the Elgar Parishad (Elgar conference), were named. But with no trouble caused during the Parishad, I thought it was a false alarm only to be proved wrong the next day.” [A screenshot provided by Sujat AmbedkarA screenshot provided by Sujat Ambedkar] When contacted, Malhar told Firstpost, "I found out about the plans for 31 December on a WhatsApp group and so I informed Sujat about it, warning him to be careful. But that's as much as I know about this whole thing. I had no idea that anything was going to happen on Monday or in the days after." The screenshot below of a set of exchanges on the WhatsApp group 'Youth for Democracy' was sent to Sujat by Malhar on 30 December. It states that the Brahman Mahasangh was planning protests at the Elgar Parishad — at which Jignesh Mevani was due to speak — and that the group had enlisted the followers of Sambhaji Bhide's Shiv Pratishthan Hindustan. Nevertheless, as the final message stated, the programme would go on as planned. Screenshot provided by Sujat AmbedkarScreenshot provided by Malhar Takle When questioned about the protests from Monday onwards, Sujat denied the accusation that BBM workers were being violent and called such claims ‘blatant lies’. He suggested that they were in fact the victims and not the attackers. "The attackers showed utmost cowardice as they didn't even have the courage to face our people. They attacked from building tops, from behind the bushes and hid in every nook and cranny they found on the Nagar-Pune Highway and attacked every car that had a blue flag or Dr BR Ambedkar symbol. There were policemen at Bhima-Koregoan but the attacked took place even before our people could reach Vijaystambh." Sujat added that he was in touch with a lot of his people and had helped them evacuate and had guided them to safety by speaking to them on the phone and passing along mass messages via SMS and WhatsApp about how to protect themselves, which routes to take and where they could find their safety for their people. "Protests cause damage and nuisance, and bring cities to a halt," he admitted, but added, "The most marginalised community was attacked during their pilgrimage. And if you do not protest in the eye of the public, how are people going to know what is happening? A certain amount of unease has to be created on the road to make the elite, privileged and middle classes realise what problems others are facing." He cited hypothetical examples of the sort of pandemonium that would have followed an attack on a Daghduseth, Lalbagh or Shirdi pilgrimage. When asked if the national parties were hogging the limelight from the Dalit agenda, he clarified, "The Dalit agenda is nothing but equality for all and dignity to live in human society. The agenda should not be limited to the Dalit community because it encompasses all humanitarian thought. But I wouldn’t say a particular nationalist party is hijacking the Dalit agenda. In fact, a lot of parties want to tie-up with Dalits due to vote bank politics." Protests on the Pune-Mumbai Highway. 101Reporters/Gunwanti ParasteProtests on the Pune-Mumbai Highway. 101Reporters/Gunwanti Paraste Sujat also pointed to the communalism that the BJP is trying to spread with Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis blaming leftist forces for the attack. Brushing aside the chief minister's claim as 'completely false', Sujat said that the video evidence and public statements from the victims and the eyewitnesses say that the attackers were holding saffron flags and shouting "Jai Bhawani" and "Jai Sri Ram" slogans. "Also, the police has booked two members of right-wing organisations — Milind Ekbote and Bhide," he said. But what if the Maharashtra bandh wasn't supported by the public? "The party would lose face if people didn't follow. But which people are we talking about? These are the people who roam around in Mercedes vehicles, go to their luxurious air-conditioned offices and sit in ACs and work on their laptops. These are the people who will continue with their work, but these are not the people we care about. Our people are the ones who got beaten up on the streets. Our people are the ones dying in manholes. Our people are the ones who are ending their lives on farms. And I am pretty sure these are the people who will support us. One should not consider just one section’s opinion about the bandh when it comes to looking at the bigger picture," said the 22-year-old. Published Date: Jan 03, 2018 16:32 PM | Updated Date: Jan 03, 2018 17:02 PM III/IV. http://indianexpress.com/article/india/congress-shows-photos-of-milind-ekbote-sambhaji-bhide-with-pm-modi-cm-fadnavis-5010721/ Congress shows photos of Milind Ekbote, Sambhaji Bhide with PM Modi, CM Fadnavis Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad said atrocities against Dalits have increased since the BJP came to power at the Centre and several states. By: Express News Service | New Delhi | Published: January 4, 2018 4:31 am Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi. (express photo by Prem Nath Pandey/File) The Congress on Wednesday said the violence in Bhima Koregaon was the result of a “conspiracy hatched” by the RSS and BJP. It said the two pro-Hindutva leaders against whom the police have filed a criminal case were “intimately” associated with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Maharasthra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad said atrocities against Dalits have increased since the BJP came to power at the Centre and several states. Dalits were beaten, burnt alive, raped and killed, he said. Former Union minister M Veerappa Moily, addressing a Congress press conference, showed photographs of Milind Ekbote of the Samast Hindu Aghadi and Sambhaji Bhide of Shiv Pratishthan Hindustan with Modi and Fadnavis. Police have filed a criminal case in Pimpri, near Pune, against Ekbote and Bhide. “We have evidence to show the cordial relationship between the BJP higher-ups and these two persons,” he said. Moily said in one photograph, one of them can be seen conversing with the Prime Minister and in another photograph, one of them is seen applying tilak to the CM’s forehead. “The persons who were responsible in disturbing the big rally of the Dalits are these two persons (Ekbote and Bhide). It is strange that people who are supposed to maintain peace, run governments both at the national level and state level should associate very closely, intimately with people who are known disruptors of peace…” he said. Moily said Dalits have been congregating at Bhima Koregaon for the last 200 years. “But all of a sudden… Bhima Koregaon village erupted…. Bombay police say that they never knew, never anticipated this kind of a gigantic eruption. That means… there is intelligence failure, there is failure on the part of police to prevent it. That is because there is a conspiracy hatched. Conspiracy hatched by the RSS and the BJP,” he said. IV. https://mumbaimirror.indiatimes.com/mumbai/other/bhima-koregaon-violence-intelligence-failure-or-deliberate-mishandling/articleshow/62358821.cms BHIMA-KOREGAON VIOLENCE: INTELLIGENCE FAILURE OR DELIBERATE MISHANDLING? By Makarand Gadgil, Mumbai Mirror | Updated: Jan 4, 2018, 04.15 AM IST Bhima-Koregaon violence: Intelligence failure or deliberate mishandling? Fadnavis-led home ministry turned a blind eye to desecration of Govind Gaikwad’s tomb; later, in Mumbai, cops seemed clueless. Questions are being raised over Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis’s grip on the home ministry, which he heads, after his handling of the attack on Dalits at Bhima-Koregaon, and its crippling fallout in the city and in various parts of the state. While Dalits have been gathering at Bhima-Koregaon on January 1 for nearly a 100 years, this year’s event was significant because it was the bicentenary of the battle of Bhima-Koregaon, and lakhs of people were expected to congregate. But Fadnavis’s home ministry turned a blind eye to the desecration of the tomb of Govind Gaikwad (from the Mahar community, who constructed a memorial to Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj at Wadhu just a few kilometres from Bhima-Koregaon) on December 29. Many Dalits also visit the memorial and Gaikwad’s tomb to commemorate the battle. Then, on January 1, stones were pelted at Dalits from the terraces of homes located along the route that they were scheduled to take. Fadnavis will have to explain why the intelligence machinery failed to detect such a large cache of stones being stored at strategic locations in the run-up to such a significant date. On Tuesday, Mumbai Police were also ill-prepared to handle the morchas that blocked various arterial roads and railway lines in the city, although they appeared more in control during Wednesday’s bandh. “Fadnavis is in a spot of bother, and it will be interesting to see how he wriggles out of the situation. This is either a case of inept handling by his government, or they deliberately allowed the situation to go out of hand for political gains,” said political analyst Prakash Akolkar. Whatever the reason, Akolkar said, the incidents have ruptured Maharashtra’s social fabric, deepening the faultlines between Marathas, OBCs and Dalits. A senior BJP leader, who did not wish to be named, admitted that the Fadnavis government was caught off guard. “On the day of the bandh, the government handled the situation quite remarkably. It will earn a few brownie points in the eyes of the party high command,” he said. Prakash Pawar, a professor of political science at Kolhapur’s Shivaji University, said, “The Marathas and the Mahars have taken the stand that this is not a fight between two communities, and this has taken the steam out of the situation. The issue won’t affect Fadnavis’s prospects of completing his term. The challenge before him will be how to keep extreme elements on the periphery of the Sangh Parivar under control.” -- Peace Is Doable -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Green Youth Movement" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send an email to [email protected]. Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/greenyouth. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
