Bhima Koregaon case: Bombay HC extends relief from arrest for Gautam Navlakha, Anand Teltumbde, Stan Swamy till 21 Nov

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Thursday extended till 21 November the relief granted to civil rights activist Gautam Navlakha, professor Anand Teltumbde and priest Stan Swamy from arrest in a case lodged against them by the Pune Police in connection with the Bhima Koregaon violence and for alleged links with Maoists.

A division bench of justices Ranjit More and Bharati Dangre was hearing petitions filed by the three seeking quashing of the FIR against them.

The bench posted the matters for hearing on 21 November after noting that petitions pertaining to the case were pending before the Supreme Court.

“We will wait and see what order the Supreme Court passes in those matters. Till the next date of hearing, the interim relief shall continue,” the bench said.

Last month, the high court had directed the police not to take any coercive action against the petitioners or arrest them.

While Navlakha was put under house arrest in the case, Teltumbde and Swamy were not arrested.

Apart from Navlakha, the police had, on 28 August, also arrested activists Varavara Rao, Arun Ferreira, Vernon Gonsalves and Sudha Bharadwaj for their alleged links with Maoists in the aftermath of violence at Bhima Koregaon in Pune district on 1 January. The police had alleged that Maoists had supported the Elgar Parishad conclave in Pune, which had led to the violence.

The Delhi High Court had released Navlakha, after which he moved the Bombay High Court seeking to have the FIR against him quashed.