Bhima Koregaon Case : Supreme Court Adjourns Bail Pleas Of Surendra Gadling, Jyoti Jagtap & NIA Appeal Against Mahesh Raut's Bail

The Supreme Court on Thursday (February 6) adjourned the petitions filed by lawyer Surendra Gadling and Jyoti Jagtap seeking bail in the Bhima Koregaon case over alleged links with banned Maoist groups.

A bench comprising Justice MM Sundresh and Justice Rajesh Bindal also adjourned the appeal filed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) challenging the bail granted to co-accused Mahesh Raut. All of them have been charged under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act.

At the outset, when Senior Advocate Anand Grover said that Gadling was an advocate who represented the "so-called Maoists", Justice Bindal said, "not just representing but doing many other things." Grover promptly replied that those were mere allegations which he could demonstrate to be false. Justice Bindal retorted that, at this stage, the Court was only required to look at the allegations.

Justice Bindal then said the accused was delaying the trial. Grover refuted this statement, saying that only the 207 CrPC proceedings were going on. Grover said that he could produce the records to show the correct picture and requested time.

Senior Advocate Mihir Desai, appearing for co-accused Jyoti Jagtap and Mahesh Raut, requested that their matters be taken up early. As regards Raut, Desai pointed out that the Bombay High Court found him entitled to bail, but stayed the operation of the bail, and the Supreme Court has been extending the stay from time to time. He also informed the bench that two other accused, Rona Wilson and Sudhir Dhawale, were granted bail by the Bombay High Court last month based on a concession given by the NIA. 

Additional Solicitor General SV Raju, for the NIA, contended that the High Court's order granting bail to Raut was "absolutely perverse."

The bench decided to take up all the matters together and adjourned the hearing. The date will be indicated in the order which is to be uploaded.

Gadling was arrested in July 2018 and has been under custody since then. Jyoti Jagtap was arrested in September 2020. So far, nine out of the sixteen accused have got bail in the case. One among the accused, Father Stan Swamy, died as an undertrial in July 2021.