MUMBAI: Days after the Maharashtra police held a press conference on the arrest of five activists for alleged links with Maoists, the Bombay high court on Monday questioned the state about its propriety. A division bench of Justices Sambhaji Shinde and Mridula Bhatkar expressed surprise when it was informed that police had held a press conference to reveal details of the arrests.“The matter is sub judice and investigation is on. How can the police reveal details of the investigation? This is wrong,” the bench told public prosecutor Deepak Thakre. The judges asked the prosecutor to communicate to the police that such press conferences should not be held.On August 31, additional DGP (law and order) Parambir Singh held a press meet in Mumbai and claimed that the activists, arrested on August 28 as part of the Pune police’s probe into the Elgar Parishad rally that purportedly led to the violence in Koregaon Bhima in January 2018, were part of the “overground” cadre of outlawed Maoist groups.A day earlier, the Pune police held a press conference on the same issue. The court was hearing a petition filed by Pune resident Satish Gaikwad, who claimed he was a victim and witness of the violence that occurred in Koregaon Bhima in January. The petition has sought transfer of the investigation to the National Investigation Agency.“It is unfortunate that Pune police investigating the crime is politically motivated. They are not working fairly and justly but with mala fide intention best known to them are arresting intellectual persons, social rights activists, advocates, human rights activists, poets, writers and other respectable persons of society,” the petition said. It further contended that the police were, with mala fide intentions, trying to connect the case in which the activists were arrested to the FIR which had named Sambhaji Bhide and Milind Ekbote.Advocate Nitin Satpute, counsel for the petitioner, pointed out that Pune police had sought in-camera hearings before the magistrate in the case. “However, they held a press conference giving details of the incident and read out letters that were reportedly part of the evidence.” The lawyer said since the police had invoked the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act in the case, the probe should be transferred to the NIA. The petition has also sought action against police officers.In June, police had arrested five activists Rona Wilson, Sudhir Dhawle, Surendra Gadling, Mahesh Raut and Shoma Sen under UAPA. Five other activists—Sudha Bharadwaj, Gautam Navlakha, Varavara Rao, Arun Ferreira and Vernon Gonsalves—were held last week in connection with the Elgar Parishad following which the police claimed the rioting took place. The Supreme Court subsequently said the five activists should be kept under house arrest.Advocate Mihir Desai, counsel for some of the accused, sought to intervene in the case and said they had not been served with a copy of the petition. Prosecutor Thakre sought time to respond to the petition. The court then adjourned the case for further hearing on September 7, 2018.Meanwhile, leader of opposition Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil on Monday asked CM Devendra Fadnavis to take stern action against additional DG (law and order) and Pune police commissioner K Venkatesham for exceeding their brief over the arrests of the activists. “The SC had asked Pune police about specific evidence against them. Instead, they knocked on the doors of the media. Whatever evidence they had, they should have submitted it before the apex court. Both Venkatesham and Parambir Singh were making attempts to pressure the judiciary. It is unfortunate,” Vikhe Patil said.