Elgar Parishad case: JNU student Umar Khalid says 'no one gave any script for speech'

In a recent update to the Elgaar Parishad case which is one of the two ongoing investigations related to the Koregaon Bhima violence witnessed on January 1, 2018, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student Umar Khalid has told the National Investigation Agency (NIA) that no one had given him a script for his speech. JNU student Umar Khalid was among those who had participated in Elgaar Parishad and made speeches, which allegedly led to violence in Bhima-Koregaon in Pune.

Khalid, in his statement to the investigating agency, has said that Justice (retired) BG Kolse-Patil, one of the organisers of the event had invited him to the meeting. His statement was part of the voluminous set of documents that the NIA submitted as additional evidence before the special court recently. 

"During my visit to Pune, I stayed at the house of Justice (retired) Kolse Patil. I don't remember who arranged the flight tickets for me. Before delivering my speech at any place, I take local knowledge from any known person. No one had given me any script of speech for the Elgar Parishad meeting," the student-activist has stated.

He added that at the Elgar Parishad meeting, many people were present on the stage and a video of it can be seen on YouTube along with his speech. He informed that he went to retd Justice Kolse Patil's house after the event got over. 

"Next day, many media persons came to his house I had also given one bite to a media person. At that time many persons related to the Elgar Parishad meeting were present in Justice Kolse Patil's house. At about 11 am, I came to know that BJP and RSS persons had attacked people who came to visit Bhima Koregaon", the statement quoting Khalid said.

Khalid has also told the NIA that he knew Rona Wilson who is an accused in the Elgar Parishad case, as she had come to JNU to deliver a speech, and he also knew Arun Ferreira, another accused who he had met at a book launch event.

Elgar parishad case

A Pune resident had lodged a police complaint against the JNU student claiming that the Khalid made 'provocative' speeches at an event organised to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the battle of Bhima-Koregaon at Shaniwar Wada and his remarks were aimed at creating disharmony and rift between the communities, which led to the violence in 2018.  

Though an FIR was registered against Khalid, he was never made an accused of allegedly making provocative speeches in the Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case, which the NIA has decided to take over from Pune police. 

The case relates to alleged inflammatory speeches delivered on December 31, 2017, at the Elgar Parishad conclave, held at Shaniwar Wada in Pune, which the police claimed triggered violence the next day near the Koregaon-Bhima war memorial located on the city's outskirts.

(With PTI input)

(Image: UmarKhalidJNU/Facebook/PTI)