Credits: Drawing by Arun Ferreira / The Polis Project
Frontline / by Majid Maqbool
From his early days with EPW to years in prison, the journalist shows how books sustain dissent, nourish freedom, and open a world beyond captivity.
Writer, journalist, and human rights activist Gautam Navlakha has had a decades-long career spanning journalism to activism. All along, through his writings and rights activism, he has always been committed to democratic rights and social justice for all. He has always stood by, spoken out and written in defence of the marginalised communities whose voices he has sought to amplify throughout his career. Read more
Supreme Court Judge Justice MM Sundresh Recuses Himself From Hearing Bail Plea Of Advocate Surendra Gadling In Elgar Parishad Case
27/08/2025
Free Press Journal / by FPJ News Service
The plea was scheduled to be heard by a bench comprising Justice Sundresh and Justice N Kotiswar Singh. Earlier, on August 8, senior advocate Anand Grover had mentioned the case before Chief Justice BR Gavai, seeking an early hearing on grounds that Gadling has been in jail for over six-and-a-half years.
Supreme Court judge Justice MM Sundresh on Tuesday recused himself from hearing the bail plea of advocate Surendra Gadling, an accused in the Elgar Parishad–Maoist links case. Read more
Justice MM Sundresh Recuses From Hearing Surendra Gadling’s Bail Plea In 2016 Gadchiroli Arson Case
26/08/2025
Live Law / by Amisha Shrivastava
The matter will be heard by another bench.
Justice MM Sundresh of the Supreme Court recused himself from hearing the bail plea of Dalit rights activist and advocate Surendra Gadling in the 2016 Gadchiroli arson case. The matter was listed today before a bench of Justice Sundresh and Justice N Kotiswar Singh. Read more
Supreme Court Justice MM Sundresh recuses from Surendra Gadling bail case
26/08/2025
Bar & Bench / by Ummar Jamal
According to the details available on the Supreme Court website, the matter is not to be listed before Justice Sundresh.
Supreme Court Justice MM Sundresh on Tuesday recused from hearing the bail plea filed by lawyer and activist Surendra Gadling in connection with the 2016 Surajgarh arson case [Surendra Pundalik Gadling vs State of Maharashtra].
According to the details available on the Supreme Court website, the matter is not to be listed before Justice Sundresh. Read more
Justice M.M. Sundresh recuses from hearing activist Surendra Gadling’s bail plea after repeated adjournments
26/08/2025
The Hindu / by Aaratrika Bhaumik
Activist Surendra Gadling’s counsel had earlier apprised Chief Justice B.R. Gavai that his bail plea had been adjourned 11 times in the Supreme Court
Supreme Court judge Justice M.M. Sundresh on Tuesday (August 26, 2025) recused himself from hearing a bail petition filed by advocate and activist Surendra Gadling in connection with the 2016 Surjagarh iron ore mine arson case. Read more
Credits: Drawing by Arun Ferreira / The Polis Project
Times of India / by TNN
A special NIA court on Tuesday granted Elgar Parishad accused, Sagar Gorkhe, permission to use a personal laptop to access his case files while in prison.
The judge acknowledged the substantial volume of legal documents in the case, stating, “It is next to impossible to carry each and every hard copy of the case papers in the prison and read it… it is easier for the accused to use his laptop and study his own case as he wishes,” the judge said. Read more
Credits: Drawing by Arun Ferreira / The Polis Project
High Court grants temporary bail to Elgar Parishad accused to meet ailing father
26/08/2025
India Today / by Vidya
The Bombay High Court granted Ramesh Gaichor, arrested in the Elgar Parishad case, three-day temporary bail to visit his ailing 75-year-old father, waiving escort charges citing his modest family background.
The Bombay High Court on Tuesday allowed Elgar Parishad accused Ramesh Gaichor temporary bail for three days to meet his ailing father, whom he has not seen in over four years of incarceration. Read more
Bombay High Court Grants 3 Days Interim Bail To Accused Ramesh Gaichor To Visit Ailing Father In Pune
26/08/2025
Live Law / by Barsi Benwal
The Bombay High Court on Tuesday (August 26) granted interim bail for 3 days to Ramesh Gaichor, one of the accused in the Bhima Koregaon – Elgar Parishad case, enabling him to visit his ailing father in Pune.
A division bench of Justices Ajay Gadkari and Rajesh Patil ordered Gaichor’s release on a surety of Rs. 25,000. He would be escorted by a police team, to be arranged by the Commissioner of Police, Navi Mumbai as he is presently lodged in Taloja jail. Read more
Bombay High Court grants three-day bail to Bhima Koregaon accused Ramesh Gaichor to visit father
26/08/2025
Bar & Bench / by Sahyaja MS
A special NIA court had earlier rejected Gaichor’s bail application to meet his ailing father.
The Bombay High Court on Tuesday granted three-day temporary bail to Ramesh Murlidhar Gaichor, one of the accused in the Bhima Koregaon-Elgar Parishad case of 2018 [Ramesh Murlidhar Gaichor v National Investigation Agency].
A Bench of Justice AS Gadkari and Justice Rajesh Patil granted temporary relief to Gaichor to enable him to visit his ailing 76-year-old father. Read more
The home minister’s accusation against vice-presidential candidate Justice Sudarshan Reddy should make us reflect deeply on how certain terms have been weaponised to invalidate the lifeworks of public intellectuals, and how the higher judiciary itself has enabled this.
… Who is a Naxal?: The attack on public intellectuals and the judiciary’s silent complicity
Of late, supporters of the ruling regime have weaponised the label of ‘Naxal’ and ‘urban Naxal’ to name-call public intellectuals who have opposed them. We saw similar allegations being deployed against intellectuals and social activists who have been imprisoned under the notorious Unlawful Lawful Activities (Prevention) Act (‘UAPA’) in the Bhima Koregaon case. Read more
Social media accounts of four of the accused reveal they are members of an organisation founded by the hardliner Sambhaji Bhide.
On August 11, Suleman Rahim Khan Pathan was sitting with a Hindu woman in a cafe in Maharashtra’s Jamner town when a group of men forced him to go along with them.
The 21-year-old was driven around in a van and brutally assaulted before finally being dropped off at a bus stand in his village. Khan died of his injuries.
… Scroll’s analysis of their social media accounts showed that the four were active members of Shri Shiv Pratishthan Hindustan, an organisation formed by the Hindutva hardliner Sambhaji Manohar Bhide, who was formerly associated with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.
In December 2022, Dalit groups and political activists had accused Bhide of instigating violence in Bhima Koregaon village through provocative speeches. Read more
In the shadow of Bhima Koregaon, the Supreme Court lets delay speak louder than justice.
Surendra Gadling’s bail application has become a Kafkaesque file in the Supreme Court. It appears on the cause list, only to vanish. It is mentioned, only to be deferred. It is scheduled, only to be adjourned. The judge presiding over it, Justice M.M. Sundresh, has turned the very act of not hearing into a form of adjudication.
The bail plea has been listed 17 times since it was first filed in August 2023. Read more
The MSPSA gives the state-corporate nexus the legal means to suppress participatory democracy under the guise of public security.
On July 10, 2025, the Maharashtra Vidhan Sabha passed a revised version of the Maharashtra Special Public Security Act (MSPSA), exactly one year after the original draft was introduced on July 11, 2024, by the Shiv Sena-BJP coalition under Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. Initially framed as a response to the perceived threat of “urban Naxalism”, the Bill claimed to address the alleged infiltration of Maoist ideology into urban areas through affiliated organisations offering logistical support and shelter to underground cadres. Read more
St. Xavier’s bowed to ABVP pressure, cancelling a memorial for the late Jesuit activist, exposing the deepening crisis of free speech and academic courage in India.
The cancellation of the Stan Swamy Memorial lecture and the weaponisation of allegations, truth is obfuscated. Read more
Over 30 organisations and prominent individuals denounce the arrest of Dalit lawyer Rajat Kalsan, allege unlawful detention, torture, and fabricated charges.
More than 30 student groups, civil society organisations, and prominent individuals have issued a joint statement condemning the arrest of Dalit activist and lawyer Adv. Rajat Kalsan, who was allegedly abducted by men in plain clothes from the Auto Market in Hisar on July 30 without being shown an arrest warrant or legal documents.
… Drawing parallels with the Bhima Koregaon arrests and detentions during anti-CAA protests, the statement alleges that Kalsan’s arrest reflects a broader pattern of silencing voices that challenge caste domination, communalism, and authoritarianism. Read more
