In the Bhima Koregaon case, the Supreme Court of India on Friday granted activists and Elgar Parishad members Vernon Gonsalves and Arun Ferreira bail. The activists were detained in August 2018 under the strict Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) on grounds of inciting violence.
Their request for bail had previously been denied by the Bombay High Court in December 2021. Gonsalves and Vernon then went to the Supreme Court of India.
The supreme court justified granted the activists’ bail by pointing out that they had been in detention for five years.
But the justices Aniruddha Bose and Sudhanshu Dhulia’s panel ruled that Gonsalves and Ferreira must remain in Maharashtra and turn in their passports to the authorities. Additionally, it instructed the two activists to use a separate mobile device to provide their addresses to the National Investigation Agency (NIA), which is looking into the situation.
The Supreme Court also granted bail to Dr. P. Varavara Rao, another defendant in the Bhima Koregaon Elgar Parishad case, in August 2022, citing medical justifications.
What exactly is the matter of Bhima Koregaon Elgar Parishad?
The case concerns the Elgar Parishad conference that took place in Pune on December 31, 2017, which the Pune police claim was sponsored by Maoists. The National Investigation Agency has charged 14 people, including Vernon Gonsalves and Arun Ferreira.
The case allegedly stems from provocative remarks made at the Elgar Parishad conclave in Pune on December 31, 2017, which, according to the police, led to unrest the following day near the Koregaon-Bhima war memorial outside the western Maharashtra city.
Five persons were arrested in June 2018 in Mumbai, Nagpur, and Delhi in connection with the Elgar Parishad event, allegedly with close Maoist ties.
According to the Pune Police, the conference was also organised by people with apparent Maoist ties. The investigation was eventually taken over by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).
Stan Swamy, a Jesuit priest and indigenous community leader who was also the oldest Indian person to be charged with terrorism under the UAPA, was also detained in this case. On 5 July 2021, he died of complications at the age of 84, bringing renewed attention to the UAPA and its role in India’s democracy.
Between October and November 2018, Ferreira, Gonsalves, and Varavara Rao were arrested and brought to Pune.
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