Who is Stan Swamy, the latest to be arrested in the Bhima Koregaon case?

An 83-year-old Jesuit priest, Stan Swamy has been arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in connection with the probe into the 2018 violence in Maharashtra’s Koregaon-Bhima village.

Stan Swamy

According to Indian Express, Father Stan Swamy is a Jesuit priest and a tribal rights activist based in Jharkhand. He has worked in the state for over three decades on various issues of the adivasi communities on land, forest and labour rights which includes questioning the non-implementation of the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution, which stipulated setting up of a Tribes Advisory Council with members solely of the adivasi community for their protection, well-being and development in the state

Father Stan Swamy was picked up from his home in Jharkhand capital Ranchi by a team of NIA officials from Delhi. The officials reportedly spent around 20 minutes at his home before taking him away.

A senior NIA official, who confirmed the arrest, said Swamy was a member of CPI (Maoist) and was actively involved in the activities of the banned outfit.

However, Swamy alleged that fake evidence had been planted in his computer before he was arrested by the NIA.