Koregaon Bhima violence: CMO should have Sharad Pawar’s letters, Uddhav tells inquiry panel

Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray has informed an inquiry commission that a few letters written by NCP (SP) head Sharad Pawar concerning the 2018 Koregaon Bhima violence should still be with the current Chief Minister's Office (CMO).

The commission, set up to probe into the violence, had in October 2025 issued a notice to Thackeray, a former CM, seeking the production of certain documents and letters submitted by Pawar.

In its affidavit submitted to the panel last week, Uddhav said the letters had been addressed to the CMO, and as per established procedure and administrative practices, all correspondence received is officially deposited and maintained in the CM's Office. According to Thackeray's affidavit, he learnt from an application submitted by Bahujan Vanchit Aghadi (VBA) chief Prakash Ambedkar that Pawar had written two letters in 2020 regarding the violence when he was the CM.

Ambedkar, a witness in the case, had filed an application in February last year seeking a direction to Thackeray to produce the documents sent by Pawar. In the letters, Ambedkar said, Pawar had named those responsible for the 2018 incident at Koregaon Bhima near Pune.

Thackeray claimed that during his tenure as the chief minister, there was a system of transparency in the administrative work of the CMO. If Pawar had sent letters, then they should be available in the records, he said.

"At present, I am not the Chief Minister. Therefore, it would be appropriate to request the current Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and the Chief Minister's Office to provide the said letters," the affidavit said.

If the violence at Koregaon Bhima was triggered by caste issues, then the same would be premeditated in nature, the affidavit said. "In such incidents, it is normally seen that innocent persons are implicated. I feel that the main culprits responsible for the violence should be identified and punished," the former chief minister said.

The Maharashtra government had set up the commission in February 2018 to conduct an inquiry into the violence. The commission is headed by former Bombay High Court Chief Justice J N Patel, while ex-chief secretary Sumit Mullick is its member.

According to the Pune police, violence had broken out on January 1, 2018, between caste groups near the war memorial in Pune district during the bicentennial anniversary of the 1818 battle of Koregaon-Bhima.

One person had died and several others, including 10 police personnel, were injured in the incident.

Police had alleged that provocative speeches at the 'Elgar Parishad conclave', held in Pune on December 31, 2017, triggered the violence near Koregaon-Bhima.

The Pune police claimed the Elgar Parishad conclave organisers had links with Maoists.

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