Mumbai: Bombay High Court grants bail to Gautam Navlakha in Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case

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The Bombay High Court, on Tuesday, granted bail to activist Gautam Navlakha in connection with the Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case. The decision was made by a division bench headed by Justice A S Gadkari, stating that Navlakha's plea for bail was "allowed."

Gautam Navlakha, who was arrested in August 2018, had been placed under house arrest in November of the previous year following permission from the Supreme Court. Presently residing in Navi Mumbai, Navlakha was granted bail by the high court on a surety of Rupees 1 lakh. He becomes the seventh accused in the case to receive bail.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) requested the court to stay the bail order for six weeks to facilitate filing an appeal in the Supreme Court. However, the bench granted a stay of three weeks.

This development follows the release order issued by a special court in Mumbai in August of this year for activists Vernon Gonsalves and Arun Ferreira, who were accused in the same Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case. The Supreme Court had granted them bail.

The Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case, stemming from the 2017-18 Bhima Koregaon violence, led to the arrest of prominent activists such as Varavara Rao, Sudha Bhardwaj, Anand Teltumbe, Stan Swamy, and others. Maharashtra Police conducted raids in Pune, Delhi, and various cities across India, alleging that the Elgar Parishad was funded by Maoists.

The Bhima Koregaon Elgar Parishad Case

The Battle of Koregaon in 1818 holds immense significance for the Dalit community, playing a pivotal role in the context of a caste-based society. In this historical battle, the Peshwas, characterized as 'high-caste' Brahmins, were infamous for their oppression and mistreatment of untouchables. Post-independence, the Dalits regarded the Koregaon obelisk as a symbol of their triumph over high-caste oppression.

On January 1, 1818, in remembrance of the 800 soldiers from the East India Company's Bombay Presidency Army, a victory pillar known as Vijay Sthamb was erected in Koregaon by the British. BR Ambedkar led the first commemoration ceremony at this site in 1928.

In Photos: Gautam Navlakha granted bail

Since then, followers of Ambedkar, known as Ambedkarites, have annually gathered at the Vijay Sthamb on January 1 to commemorate the historic event.

In 2018, just before the commemoration, approximately 250 groups affiliated with far-left Dalit organizations, purportedly linked to Maoist ideology, converged under the banner of "Elgar Parishad." They organized a conference at Shaniwar Wada in Pune, the former seat of the Peshwas.

The Maharashtra Police alleged that the inflammatory speeches delivered during the Elgar Parishad conclave on December 31, 2017, in Pune triggered violence the following day near the Koregaon-Bhima war memorial on the outskirts of the western Maharashtra city.

The incident marked a contentious turn of events, leading to legal scrutiny and investigations surrounding the alleged connection between the Elgar Parishad gathering and the outbreak of violence near the historic war memorial. (With inputs from agencies)