Persecution – Page 2 – free them all

SC Justice MM Sundresh recuses from Surendra Gadling’s Bail Plea In 2016 Gadchiroli Arson Case

26/08/2025 Asha

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

Also read:
▪ In Surendra Gadling’s case, adjournment becomes the verdict (Frontline / Aug 2025)
▪ SC to consider listing bail plea of Surendra Gadling (Hindustan Times / Aug 2025)
▪ Will anti-Naxal drive pave way for mining giants? (New Indian Express / May 2025)
▪ How Long is Too Long? – On the Maximum Period that an Undertrial Prisoner can be Detained (Constitutional Law and Philosophy | by Hany Babu and Surendra Gadling | Oct 2024)
▪ When Push Comes to Shove: Tracking Judicial Recusals and Transfers (The Wire / Apr 2023)
▪ DISINHERITING ADIVASIS – THE GADCHIROLI GAME PLAN (KAFILA / June 2018)

Special NIA court allows Sagar Gorkhe to use laptop in prison for case files

26/08/2025 Asha

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

Also read:
▪ BK-16 PRISON DIARIES: Sagar Gorkhe on his battle to survive Taloja jail’s brutality (The Polis Project / Feb 2025)
▪ Many Prisoners at Taloja Jail Not Produced Before Court For Years, Reveals Survey by Jailed Activists (The Wire / Feb 2025)
▪ Maharashtra: Raising the bar from behind bars (Midday.com / May 2024)
▪ Bhima Koregaon case: Two prisoners pass law entrance test (Hindustan Times / May 2024)

Bombay High Court grants three-day bail to Ramesh Gaichor to visit ailing father

26/08/2025 Asha

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

Also read:
▪ Bail plea of Elgar Parishad case accused to take care of ailing father rejected (India Today / Jul 2025)
▪ Ramesh Gaichor on the Elgar prisoners’ defiance of the neo-Peshwai prison system (The Polis Project | by Ramesh Gaichor | Sep 2024)
▪ Ramesh Gaichor’s parents just want to meet him again before they die (The Polis Project / Jul 2024)

Who is a ‘Naxal’?

25/08/2025 Asha

CPI(M) poster campaign 2020

The Leaflet / by Justice K. Chandru (Retd.)

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

Also read:
▪ Don’t Distort SC’s Salwa Judum Ruling or Resort to Name Calling, Former Judges Tell Amit Shah (The Wire / Aug 2025)
▪ Fall of Democracy’s Last Bastion: Election Commission as the BJP’s Strategic Shield (The Wire | by Anand Teltumbde | Aug 2025)
▪ The Maharashtra Special Public Security Bill Perpetuates India’s Banning Regime (The Wire / Aug 2025)
▪ Insecurity By Law: A Critique of the Maharashtra Special Public Security Bill in the Context of India’s Banning Regime (PUDR / Jul 2025)
▪ From ‘tukde tukde gang’ to ‘urban Naxal’: How media trials enable the government to stifle dissent (Scroll.in / Sep 2018)

In Surendra Gadling’s case, adjournment becomes the verdict

23/08/2025 Asha

Frontline / by Saurav Das

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

Also read:
▪ SC to consider listing bail plea of Surendra Gadling (Hindustan Times / Aug 2025)
▪ How Long is Too Long? – On the Maximum Period that an Undertrial Prisoner can be Detained (Constitutional Law and Philosophy | by Hany Babu and Surendra Gadling | Oct 2024)
▪ Surendra Gadling’s Computer Was Attacked, Incriminating Documents Planted: Arsenal Consulting (The Wire / July 2021)
▪ Gadling in jail. Reason? As lawyer-activist he has been ‘unpleasant’ to India’s topcops (Counterview / Dec 2020)

Maharashtra Special Public Security Act, Pre-Emptive Criminalisation And Indefinite Surveillance

22/08/2025 Asha

Outlook / by Anand Teltumbde

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

Also read:
▪ Fall of Democracy’s Last Bastion: Election Commission as the BJP’s Strategic Shield (The Wire | by Anand Teltumbde | Aug 2025)
▪ New Maharashtra Security Law Open To Abuse, Threatens Rights; Say ‘No’ To It (Deccan Chronicle / Aug 2025)
▪ The Maharashtra Special Public Security Bill Perpetuates India’s Banning Regime (The Wire / Aug 2025)
▪ Insecurity By Law: A Critique of the Maharashtra Special Public Security Bill in the Context of India’s Banning Regime (PUDR / Jul 2025)
▪ As Maharashtra Govt Brings Bill Against ‘Urban Naxalism’, Activists Fear Criminalisation of Dissent (The Wire / Jul 2025)

New Maharashtra Security Law Open To Abuse, Threatens Rights; Say ‘No’ To It

15/08/2025 Asha

New Maharashtra Security Law Open To Abuse, Threatens Rights; Say ‘No’ To It

18/08/2025

Deccan Chronicle / by Aakar Patel

The term “Urban Naxalism” has no legal definition in Indian law. With its vague language, discriminatory focus, absence of judicial oversight, and high potential for misuse, the bill risks criminalising of legitimate dissent in one of our largest states
We celebrated Independence Day earlier this month, to mark the culmination of our freedom struggle. Independence and freedom from what? From alien rule and from all oppressive laws — no matter who imposes them on us. The governor of Maharashtra is currently examining a law passed by the state Assembly called the “Maharashtra Special Public Security Bill”.
Read more

Open letter: Withhold assent to the Maharashtra special public security bill

15/08/2025

Amnesty International / by Aakar Patel

Your Excellency Shri. Chandrapuram Ponnusamy Radhakrishnan, Governor of Maharashtra.
I write to you with grave concern regarding the recently passed Maharashtra Special Public Security Bill, which now awaits your assent. Though presented as a tool to combat “urban naxalism,” The Bill introduces vague, overboard, and ideologically biased provisions that pose an immediate threat to international and constitutionally protected rights and will criminalize dissent in the state.
The Honorable Chief Minister, Devendra Fadnavis, has asserted that the law will not be used to suppress government critics. However, the term “urban naxalism” has no legal definition in Indian law. It is a rhetorical and politically charged phrase – popularized in media and political discourse, not jurisprudence. Its vagueness allows it to be weaponized against civil society, often conflating peaceful dissent with sedition or terrorism. There is a troubling precedent. The Bhima Koregaon case, in which 16 activists were arrested under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act UAPA, demonstrates how this label has been used to detain individuals for years without trial.
Read more

Also read:
▪ Opposition Did Not Deal Well Enough With Maharashtra Bill Against ‘Urban Naxalism’: Sharad Pawar (The Wire / Aug 2025)
▪ The Maharashtra Special Public Security Bill Perpetuates India’s Banning Regime (The Wire / Aug 2025)
▪ Insecurity By Law: A Critique of the Maharashtra Special Public Security Bill in the Context of India’s Banning Regime (PUDR / Jul 2025)

Supreme Court Agrees For Early Listing Of Surendra Gadling’s Bail Plea

08/08/2025 Asha

Supreme Court Agrees For Early Listing Of Surendra Gadling’s Bail Plea

08/08/2025

Live Law / by Anmol Kaur Bawa

The Supreme Court today (August 8) accepted a request for early hearing of the bail plea by Dalit rights activist and advocate Surendra Gadling in the 2018 Bhima Koregaon case under the UAPA over alleged Maoist links.
Sr Advocate Anand Grover, appearing for Gadling, mentioned the matter before the bench of CJI BR Gavai and Justices K Vinod Chandran and NV Anjaria.
Read more

SC to consider listing bail plea of Surendra Gadling

08/08/2025

Hindustan Times / by PTI

The Supreme Court on Friday took note of repeated adjournments and assured early listing of the bail plea of advocate Surendra Gadling accused in the Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case.
A bench comprising Chief Justice B R Gavai and Justices K Vinod Chandran and N V Anjaria was urged by his counsel and senior advocate Anand Grover, who said his client had been in jail for “6.5 years”.
Read more

Also read:
▪ How Long is Too Long? – On the Maximum Period that an Undertrial Prisoner can be Detained (Constitutional Law and Philosophy | by Hany Babu and Surendra Gadling | Oct 2024)
▪ Surendra Gadling’s Computer Was Attacked, Incriminating Documents Planted: Arsenal Consulting (The Wire / July 2021)
▪ Gadling in jail. Reason? As lawyer-activist he has been ‘unpleasant’ to India’s topcops (Counterview / Dec 2020)

Ramesh Gaichor Moves Bombay High Court, Seeks Interim Bail To Visit Ailing Father

06/08/2025 Asha

Live Law / by Narsi Benwal

The Bombay High Court on Wednesday (August 6) ordered the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to take instructions and file a reply in response to the petition filed by Ramesh Gaichor, one of the accused in the Bhima Koregaon – Elgar Parishad case, who has sought temporary bail to visit his ailing father.
Read more

NIA court rejects Gautam Navlakha’s plea to stay in Delhi, slams repeated applications

06/08/2025 Asha

Bail ! Gautam with his partner Sabha Husain. May 2024.

Mumbai court denies Elgar Parishad case accused’s plea to visit Delhi

07/08/2025

India Today / by Vidya

Advocate Wahab Khan, argued that Gautam Navlakha had complied with all previous court conditions when earlier permitted to travel and that his request was genuine, time-bound.
A Special NIA Court in Mumbai has dismissed activist Gautam Navlakha’s application seeking permission to travel to Delhi for 45 days, sharply criticising the repeated nature of such requests and calling it a “deliberate attempt to circumvent judicial restrictions”.
Read more

NIA court rejects Gautam Navlakha’s plea to stay in Delhi, slams repeated applications

06/08/2025

Times of India / by Rebecca Samervel

In a scathing order rejecting the plea of 73-year-old activist, lawyer and 2018 Elgar Parishad accused Gautam Navlakha to travel and stay in Delhi for 45 days for personal and professional reasons, a special National Investigation Agency (NIA) judge criticised him for what it termed as “ingeniously” moving “application after application” to reside in the national capital, despite a previous plea for permanent residency being denied.
Read more

Can’t give nod ‘every now and then’: Court rejects Navlakha’s plea to travel to Delhi

05/08/2025

The Indian Express / by Express News Service

In the latest plea, he submitted that he wants to travel as his sister cannot come to Mumbai due to her health condition.
A special court rejected a plea filed by activist Gautam Navlakha, arrested in the Elgaar Parishad case, to stay in Delhi for 45 days to visit his 86-year-old sister and for other purposes.
In his plea, Navlakha sought permission to stay in Delhi from July 15 to August 30, citing that he had been similarly permitted in November 2024 and had abided with all conditions.
Read more

Also read:
▪ Bhima Koregaon case: Court rejects activist Gautam Navlakha’s plea to live in Delhi (Scroll.in / Jun 2025)
▪ BK-16 Prison Diaries: The ‘ordinary’ in extraordinary times: A captive’s life in Covid-19 (The Polis Project | by Gautam Navlakha | May 2025)
▪ Navlakha files application in court seeking permission to stay in Delhi (The Indian Express / Apr 2025)
▪ Gautam Navlakha granted bail by Supreme Court; orders him to pay 20 lakhs for the expenses incurred during his house arrest (cjp / May 2024)
▪ Elgar Parishad-Bhima Koregaon accused struggle to find house in city (Hindustan Times / Nov 2022)