Satara police get lawyer Sadavarte's custody in 2020 case over use of 'objectionable' words

Police in Maharashtra's Satara city on Wednesday secured the custody of lawyer Gunaratna Sadavarte in connection with a case of alleged use of objectionable language during the protests for Maratha reservation in 2020, an official said.

Sadavarte, one of the lawyers representing the striking workers of the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation, was arrested along with several MSRTC workers by the Mumbai police last week after they staged a protest outside NCP chief Sharad Pawar's residence in the metropolis.

He was produced before a magistrate court in Mumbai at the end of his police remand on Wednesday. The Mumbai court remanded him in judicial custody.

Following this, on a separate plea the Mumbai court handed over the custody of the lawyer to the Satara police, special public prosecutor Pradeep Gharat said.

Sadavarte will be now produced before a court in Satara, Gharat said.

''We have received the custody of Sadavarte today in a case registered with the city police,'' said Bhagwan Nimbalkar, senior inspector, Satara city police station.

In Satara, around 100km from Pune, a local resident had filed a police complaint alleging Sadavarte used objectionable words on a TV channel during the protests seeking reservation in jobs and education for the Maratha community in 2020, the official said.

Based on the complaint, the Satara police had registered an FIR against the lawyer.

Earlier, a team of the Satara police, led by Nimbalkar, had reached Mumbai to seek Sadavarte's custody. PTI SPK DC AVI GK RSY RSY