'Maoist sympathisers recurited people'

Human rights advocate Sudha Bharadwaj (L) after she was arrested by the Pune police in connection with the Bhima Koregaon violence, in Faridabad on August 28, 2018. PTI file photo

Maoist sympathisers, Vernon Gonsalves, Arun Ferreira and Sudha Bharadwaj, were engaged in recruiting people and sending them to the guerilla zone, according to the Pune police.

This was revealed by public prosecutor Ujjwala Pawar while arguing before special judge K D Vadane, who rejected the bail pleas of three of them.

While Gonsalves and Ferreira have been arrested from Mumbai and neighbouring Thane, respectively, Bharadwaj is likely to be arrested from Faridabad on Saturday.

In its observation, the court noted that Ferreira and Gonsalves under the banner of Radical Students Union recruited members - Mahesh and Nandu - and sent them to guerilla zone.

The court also noted that Bharadwaj was given the responsibility of sending new recruits from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi and Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai.