HC grants interim relief to Navlakha till Dec 2

The Bombay High Court on Friday granted interim protection from arrest to human rights activist Gautam Navlakha, who is one of the accused in the Bhima-Koregaon violence case. The HC has granted him interim relief till December 2.

The HC would hear the plea of Navlakha and also a similar application of professor Anand Teltumbde, who too is named in this case.

A bench of Justice Prakash Naik has ordered the Pune police not to arrest Navlakha till further orders. The bench had earlier this month refused to entertain Navlakha’s plea and had instead asked him to approach the Pune sessions court, which is seized up with the cases against him and nearly a dozen activists.

Accordingly, Navlakha moved the Pune sessions court, which turned down his anticipatory bail application stating that his “custodial interrogation” was necessary as the investigating agency has been wanting to arrest him since 2018.

Navlakha is booked under stringent law along with a dozen of human rights activists, all of whom are accused of instigating the Bhima-Koregaon riots that took place in Pune in January 2018. The group of activists has also been booked for having links with the banned Communist Party of India (Maoist) and also with some Naxal outfits.

These activists are also accused of for plotting to kill prime minister Narendra Modi.

They have been accordingly booked for sedition, waging war against the country and also under the relevant provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).