Transfer Stan Swamy to hospital, directs HC

MUMBAI: The Bombay high court on Friday directed the jail authorities in Maharashtra to shift Jesuit priest and activist Stan Swamy, an accused in the Elgar Parishad-maoist links case, from the Taloja prison to a private hospital in Mumbai for treatment for two weeks.

A bench of Justices SS Shinde and NR Borkar directed the prison authorities to ensure that Swamy, 84, was shifted from the prison in Navi Mumbai to the Holy Family Hospital in suburban Bandra “preferably during the course of the day.” The bench’s order came after Swamy’s advocate, senior counsel Mihir Desai, moved the bench seeking an urgent hearing on a plea.

Swamy has been lodged in the Taloja prison hospital since his arrest in the case in October 2020.

Advocate Desai had moved a vacation bench, led by Justice SJ kathawala, seeking medical aid and interim bail for Swamy.

At the time, the bench had said that while the issue of the medical bail would be decided later, Swamy could be shifted to the state-run JJ Hospital in Mumbai for treatment.

Swamy was present before the court at the time via video-conferencing, but had refused to get admitted to the JJ Hospital, saying he had been there twice earlier but had found no relief.

The tribal rights activist had said he would “rather die in prison than go to JJ Hospital”. The bench had then offered to shift Swamy to a hospital of his choice but he said no. Advocate Desai then sought time to speak with Swamy and to convince him to get admitted to a hospital.