Kabir Kala Manch – free them all

Maharashtra: Top Cop Accuses Decades-Old Cultural, Rights Orgs of Working as ‘Naxal Fronts’

02/02/2023 Asha

The Wire / by Sukanya Shantha

At the recent police conference attended by PM Modi, Gadchiroli DIGP Sandip B. Patil claimed in a paper that 15 cultural and rights organisations are actually “active frontal organisations of Naxals.” Behind this claim is little evidence.
In 2017, the artiste couple Shital Sathe and Sachin Mali publicly announced their decision to split from the cultural outfit, Kabir Kala Manch (KKM) after 15 years of association.
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Also read:
● UAPA – CRIMINALISING DISSENT AND STATE TERROR – Study of UAPA Abuse in India, 2009-2022 (PUCL / Sep 2022)
● Kabir Kala Manch: A History of Revolutionary Singing and State Repression (ritimo / April 2022)
● The Security Playbook Used To Erode Democracy In Modi’s India & How The Tide Might Turn (article 14 / March 2022)
● Maharashtra: Activists, Lawyers Added to ‘Union War Book’, Listed as ‘Enemies of the State’ (The Wire / Jul 2021)
● From ‘tukde tukde gang’ to ‘urban Naxal’: How media trials enable the government to stifle dissent (Scroll.in / Sep 2018)

Elgaar activist Harshali Potdar questioned on historical references of battle of Koregaon

23/01/2023 Asha

The Indian Express / by Chandan Haygunde

A day before the violence, Elgaar Parishad had held a conclave at Shaniwar Wada in Pune on December 31, 2017, to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the battle of Koregaon Bhima.
Activist Harshali Potdar, who is among the organisers of the Elgaar Parishad, was questioned Sunday on the history of battle of Koregaon Bhima of January 1, 1818, during her cross examination before the Koregaon Bhima Commission of Inquiry.
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Also Read:
● Top Investigating Officer Admits Elgar Parishad Event ‘Had No Role’ in Bhima Koregaon Violence (The Wire / Dec 27, 2022)
● Let’s Remember the Lesson of Bhima Koregaon: Down with the New Peshwai (Sanhati│ by Sudhir Dhawale │ March 2018)
● The Myth of Bhima Koregaon Reinforces the Identities It Seeks to Transcend (The Wire | Anand Teltumbde | Jan 2018)
● Why peoples’ coalitions are uniting against Hindutva — the ‘new Peshwai’ (Dailyo.in │ by Arun Ferreira and Vernon Gonsalves │ Jan 30, 2018)

Thousands gather at Chaityabhumi to pay homage to Dr. B.R. Ambedkar

07/12/2022 Asha

Dalit women must fight for rights: Ambedkar’s granddaughter

07/12/2022

Deccan Herald / by DHNS

Referring to the Bhima Koregaon case, she said Dalits are steadily adopting a “silent stance,” despite being attacked regularly across the country
B R Ambedkar’s granddaughter Ramabai Anand Teltumbde on Tuesday appealed to women to ‘unite and fight’ for scholarships and employment opportunities, indirectly hitting out at the Modi administration.
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Thousands gather at Chaityabhumi to pay homage to Dr. B.R. Ambedkar

07/12/2022

The Hindu / by Sonam Saigal

People of all ages, young and old, calling themselves ‘Ambedkar,’ gathered at Chaityabhumi, the cremation ground of the Father of the Indian Constitution.
Thousands of men, women and children from across Maharashtra came to Mumbai on Tuesday to pay homage to Dr. B.R. Ambedkar on his 66th death anniversary.
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Inconsistencies in Bail Orders Mean Individual Liberty Is the Outcome of Judicial Lottery

20/10/2022 Asha

posters by @/bakeryprasad

The Wire / by Gautam Bhatia

The judgments denying bail to Jyoti Jagtap and Umar Khalid – from the Bombay and Delhi high courts respectively – reveal that UAPA adjudication continues to be inconsistent and judge-centric.
In June and October 2021, the Delhi and Bombay high courts had passed two important judgments on bail under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA). The Delhi high court’s judgment(s) granted bail to Asif Iqbal Tanha, Devangana Kalita, and Natasha Narwal, who were accused of various UAPA offences arising out of the February 2020 Delhi riots. The Bombay high court granted bail to Iqbal Ahmed Kabir Ahmed, who was accused of criminal conspiracy involving members of the banned ISIS group.
The significance of these judgments – I had written at the time – lay in how they articulated a “jurisprudence of liberty” within the stringent confines of the UAPA.
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Also read/watch:
● As Bhima Koregaon case completes its fourth anniversary, State reprisal is writ large in its twists and turns (The Leaflet / June 2022)
● Video: Dafachya Talavar (Songs of Defiance) – A short documentary on Kabir Kala Manch | Hindi, Marthi (subtitles: English) | 24:01min | 2022

Kabir Kala Manch incited hatred, passion at Elgar Parishad: Bombay High Court [read order]

18/10/2022 Asha

Kabir Kala Manch Incited Hatred By Ridiculing Phrases Acche Din, Demonetization In Plays: Bombay HC [read order]

18/10/2022

Live Law / by Sharmeen Hakim

Text ridiculing phrases like ‘Ram Mandir’ and ‘Acche Din’ aimed at the democratically elected government in Kabir Kala Manch’s plays at the Elgar Parishad event in 2017 incited hatred & passion and indicate a larger conspiracy, the Bombay High Court has held.
In its detailed order refusing bail to accused Jyoti Jagtap under UAPA, the HC also took exception to the mention of ‘gomutra,’ ‘calling the PM an ‘infant,’ ‘sanatan dharma,’ ‘atrocities of peshwas towards dalits’ and ‘atrocities of dalits in today’s India’ etc.
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Kabir Kala Manch incited hatred, passion at Elgar Parishad: Bombay High Court

17/10/2022

India Today / by Vidya

Jyoti Jagtap was an active member of the KKM which, during its stage play at the Elgar Parishad conclave on December 31, 2017, gave not only “aggressive but highly provocative slogans”, the court said.
The Kabir Kala Manch (KKM) admittedly performed and incited hatred by performing on an agenda in the Elgar Parishad event, the judgment passed by the division bench of Justices AS Gadkari and MN Jadhav of the Bombay High Court observed while rejecting the bail plea of one of the accused, Jyoti Jagtap.
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Also read:
● Kabir Kala Manch: A History of Revolutionary Singing and State Repression (ritimo / April 2022)

Bombay High Court rejects bail petition of Kabir Kala Manch activist Jyoti Jagtap

17/10/2022 Asha

Bombay HC rejects activist Jyoti Jagtap’s bail petition

17/10/2022

Scroll.in / by Scroll Staff

A bench comprising Justices Ajay Gadkari and Milind Jadhav observed that the case filed against her by the National Investigation Agency was prima facie true.
The Bombay High Court on Tuesday rejected a bail application filed by activist Jyoti Jagtap, one of the accused persons in the Bhima Koregaon case, Bar and Bench reported.
Jagtap, who is a member of cultural organisation Kabir Kala Manch, has been in prison since September 2020. On Monday, a bench of Justices Ajay Gadkari and Milind Jadhav rejecting her bail plea, observing that the case filed against her by the National Investigation Agency was prima facie true.
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Bombay High Court rejects bail plea of Jyoti Jagtap

17/10/2022

Bar & Bench / by Neha Joshi

A bench of Justices AS Gadkari and Milind Jadhav observed that the NIA case was prima facie true and considering the material against Jagtap, the appeal challenging rejection of bail by Special Court stood dismissed.
The Bombay High Court on Tuesday rejected the regular bail application filed by Jyoti Jagtap, one of the youngest accused in the Bhima Koregaon case of 2018.
Jagtap, allegedly part of the banned performance group by the name Kabir Kala Manch (KKM), had approached the High Court in appeal after a Special Court under the National Investigation Act (NIA) had rejected her bail application on February 14 this year
The high court bench of Justice AS Gadkari and Milind Jadhav, hwoever, rejected the appeal today.
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Bombay High Court Denies Bail to Jyoti Jagtap

17/10/2022

Live Law / by Sharmeen Hakim

The Bombay High Court on Monday denied bail to Jyoti Jagtap, an accused in the Bhima Koregaon-Elgar Parishad Case under the anti-terror Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
Jagtap, 32, is allegedly a member of Kabir Kala Manch — a cultural group branded as a front organisation of the banned CPI (Maoist). She was arrested by the NIA in September, 2020.
According to NIA, Jagtap and others organised the Elgar Parishad on December 31, 2017 that led to violence the following day.
Read more

Also watch:
● Video: Dafachya Talavar (Songs of Defiance) – A short documentary on Kabir Kala Manch | Hindi, Marthi (subtitles: English) | 24:01min | 2022

Jyoti Jagtap moves Bombay HC challenging special court’s bail rejection order

31/08/2022 Asha

NIA opposes bail plea of Elgar Parishad accused Jyoti Jagtap, says she received arms training

31/08/2022

India Today / by Vidya

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Tuesday opposed the bail plea of Jyoti Jagtap who is an accused in the Elgar Parishad case.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Tuesday opposed the bail plea of Kabir Kala Manch (KKM) member Jyoti Jagtap, who is accused in the 2018 Elgar Parishad case. Jagtap was arrested on September 8, 2020 and a charge sheet was filed against her on October 9, 2020.
… A division bench of the High Court will hear the plea on September 13.
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Jyoti Jagtap moves Bombay HC challenging special court’s bail rejection order

30/08/2022

The Indian Express / by Express News Service

In the plea filed through advocate Kritika Agarwal, Jagtap said she is innocent and has been falsely implicated in the case. Jagtap said the special court erred in concluding that a prima facie case existed against her.
An accused in the Elgaar Parishad case, Jyoti Jagtap, recently approached the Bombay High Court challenging an order of a special court that denied her regular bail. A division bench of Justice Ajay S Gadkari and Justice Milind N Jadhav Tuesday posted hearing after two weeks.
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Also read:
● Special NIA Court Refuses Bail To DU Associate Prof Hany Babu And Three Kabir Kala Manch Members (Live Law / Feb 2022)

Commission of Inquiry: Elgaar Parishad activist questioned over Anand Teltumbde’s article

14/07/2022 Asha

The Indian Express / by Chandan Haygunde

During the cross-examination before the Koregaon Bhima Commission of Inquiry, activist Harshali Potdar was questioned about an article written by Anand Teltumbde in memory of Sridhar Srinivasan, the alleged central committee member of the banned CPI-Maoist.
Alleged to be a top urban operative of the banned organisation, Sridhar was arrested along with his aide Vernon Gonsalves by the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) in 2007.
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Also read:
● Witness Before Probe Panel Accuses Sambhaji Bhide & Milind Ekbote Of Instigating Bhima Koregaon Riots (Live Law / Oct 2021)

And comrades admire Jyoti Jagtap

11/07/2022 Asha

Midday.com / by Ajaz Ashraf

That’s why comrades have not forgotten her as she festers in jail. They send her books on psychology—her passion, wire money to her prison account, and take donations to fund her legal battle.
Jyoti Jagtap was on her way to Pune*s Saras Baug on September 8, 2020, to meet her mates from the Kabir Kala Manch, a cultural troupe which often has had to endure the state*s iron fist in its 20-year existence. The Saras Baug meet had been convened to discuss the implications of the arrest of two members of the Manch – Ramesh Gaichor and Sagar Gorkhe – a day earlier, for inciting the 2018 Bhima-Koregaon violence with their music show and for harbouring links with the Maoists.
Jyoti was being tailed as she wended towards Saras Baug, for when she stopped her scooter at a traffic light, a woman slid on the pillion and said: “You are under arrest.”
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Also read:
● And the letters of Rona Wilson (Midday.com / June 2022)
● And Allah’s call to Hany Babu (Midday.com / June 2022)
● And Ma can’t sing with Sagar (Midday.com / June 2022)
● And he waits for Shoma Sen (Midday.com / May 2022)
● And she waits for Gautam Navlakha (Midday.com / May 2022)

And Ma can’t sing with Sagar

06/06/2022 Asha

Midday / by Ajaz Ashraf

Sagar Gorkhe, termed Maoist twice and sent to jail, where he fights for the rights of the inmates, continues writing songs—of hope: “From wounds shall burst out vines/Learning how to blossom again”
agar Gorkhe, a Dalit accused in the Bhima-Koregaon case, was on the fourth day of his hunger strike at Mumbai’s Taloja Central Jail when his mother Surekha learnt about it, via a WhatsApp forward on her daughter’s mobile. Surekha stopped taking food. Her family and members of the Kabir Kala Manch, a cultural troupe to which Sagar belongs, tried to coax her into eating.
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Also read:
● And he waits for Shoma Sen (Midday.com / May 2022)
● And she waits for Gautam Navlakha (Midday.com / May 2022)