Maha: Hindutva leader Bhide to lead pro-CAA rally in Sangli

Controversial Hindutva leader Sambhaji Bhide on Tuesday said his outfit would organise a rally in Sangli on December 30 in support of the Citizenship Amendment Act. Addressing a press conference, Bhide said the Act is useful and beneficial for minorities being prosecuted in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan.

"Shri Shivprathisthan Hindustan supports the Act and will organise a march in Sangli on December 30. It will start from Ram Temple and conclude at Maruti Chowk," Bhide said, adding that some people were spreading disinformation about the Act. He also demanded stern action against those who indulged in violence during anti-CAA protests across the country, including seizure of assets.

Bhide was booked by the Pune rural police in the wake of caste clashes near Koregaon-Bhima village in January, 2018. Violence had broken out when Dalit activists had assembled to commemorate 200th anniversary of the Koregaon- Bhima battle in which the Peshwa army was defeated by British forces, several soldiers of which were Dalits..