A court in Maharashtra’s Kolhapur on Tuesday sent journalist Prashant Koratkar to police custody till March 28 for allegedly making derogatory remarks about Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and his son, Chhatrapati Sambhaji
Representational Image. File Pic
A court in Maharashtra’s Kolhapur on Tuesday sent journalist Prashant Koratkar to police custody till March 28 for allegedly making derogatory remarks about Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and his son, Chhatrapati Sambhaji.
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Koratkar, a Nagpur resident, was arrested in Telangana on Monday following a case registered against him on February 26. The case stemmed from an audio conversation between him and Kolhapur-based historian Indrajeet Sawant.
The First Information Report (FIR) was filed under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for allegedly promoting hatred or enmity between groups. The controversy erupted after Sawant shared the audio recording on social media, sparking widespread outrage.
Earlier, on March 18, additional sessions judge D V Kashyap in Kolhapur rejected Koratkar’s anticipatory bail plea.
Koratkar had claimed in the plea that his phone was compromised and the audio was doctored. He also mentioned that he had issued a public apology.
On Tuesday, the sessions court remanded Koratkar in police custody till March 28.
As Koratkar was being produced before the court amid tight police security, the followers of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and Sambhaji Maharaj raised slogans against him.
Sawant's lawyer Asim Sarode, informed the court that Koratkar was on the run for the past one month and he formatted his mobile phone.
"The police need his custody to investigate why he formatted the data from his phone. Also, police need to collect his voice samples. As the accused was on the run for one month, it is yet to be checked who helped him stay with them for so many days," Sawant said, reported PTI.
Koratkar's lawyer Saurabh Ghag stated, "The whole matter is run via media trial. The accused had issued a public apology. The police have all the call details from February 25, hence there is no need for his further police custody."
After hearing the arguments from both sides, the court remanded Koratkar in police custody.
BJP giving more importance to Aurangzeb than Shivaji Maharaj: Sena (UBT) attacks former ally
It also said the Centre should remove the protected monument tag of Aurangzeb's tomb, located in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, to prevent riots and cool down the heads of fanatics in the state.
Amid growing demand to demolish Aurangzeb's tomb, opposition Shiv Sena (UBT) on Wednesday attacked the BJP, claiming that the ruling party considers the Mughal emperor more important than Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, reported news agency PTI.
It also said the Centre should remove the protected monument tag of Aurangzeb's tomb, located in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, to prevent riots and cool down the heads of fanatics in the state.
Violence erupted in Nagpur on Monday after stones were hurled at police amid rumours that the holy book of a community was burnt during an agitation by a right-wing body for the removal of Aurangzeb's tomb.
(With inputs from PTI)
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