Persecution – Page 75 – free them all

In prison, waiting is a habit turning slowly into addiction: Varavara Rao’s older prison diaries

31/03/2021 Maya

Scroll.in / by Varavara Rao

An excerpt from Varavara Rao’s ‘Captive Imagination: Letters from Prison’, published in 2010.

A day without toil
A night without love
A waiting on the shores of history…

Of the four days of life for which we have begged, two are lost in hope and the rest in waiting, said Bahadur Shah Zafar. In life outside, there is action to separate the hope from the waiting. Action could, of course, lead you to more hope and more waiting. But, lost in activity, time seems to slip through your fingers, your toes, from before your very eyes. Life in prison is not like that.
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Also read: FRAME UP OF INDIAN POLITICAL PRISONERS REVEALED – New Edition of COLORS OF THE CAGE by Rao’s co-accused human rights activist Arun Ferreira (Feb 2021)

Video: Bhima Koregaon accused continue to wait for bail

30/03/2021 Maya

InOldNews / by InOldNews

Vira Sathidar, a poet, writer, activist, and also one of the editors of a radical Anti-Caste Marathi Magazine ‘Vidrohi’ talks about incarceration of Sudhir Dhawale, founder of Vidrohi. Sudhir Dhawale along with two other activists- Surendra Gadhling and Prof. Shoma Sen were arrested by Police from Nagpur and are still in jail. These were among the first few arrests of Human rights activists by Modi Government under charges of being involved in Bhima Koregaon Violence and in a plot to assassinate PM Modi. The magazine stopped its publication due to various reasons, one being the constant threat of police surveillance.
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Supreme Court Reserves Order On Gautam Navlakha’s Plea For Default Bail

26/03/2021 Maya

Supreme Court Reserves Order On Gautam Navlakha’s Plea For Default Bail

26/03/2021

Live Law / by Livelaw News Network

The Supreme Court on Friday reserved its order on a plea filed by senior journalist and activist Gautam Navlakha, against an order of the Bombay High Court denying him default bail in the Bhima Koregaon case.
The Bench comprising of Justice UU Lalit and Justice KM Joseph said that it will release the order after 7th April, as Justice Joseph is not available until then.
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Supreme Court To Hear Gautam Navlakha’s Plea For Default Bail As First Item Tomorrow

25/03/2021

Live Law / by Mehal Jain

On the request of the National Investigation Agency, the Supreme Court today adjourned the hearing on Bhima Koregaon accused Gautam Navlakha’s bail plea to 10:30 a.m. on Friday as the first item on the board.
Appearing before a bench headed by Justice UU Lalit, ASG SV Raju advanced,
“I am seeking only one day’s accommodation. It is not a regular bail application. If it was regular bail, I would understand. It is a default bail application on some hyper technical grounds…”
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Supreme Court To Hear Gautam Navlakha’s Plea On March 22

15/03/2021

Live Law / by Livelaw News Network

Whether Period Of Unlawful Custody Should Be Considered For Default Bail?
The Supreme Court on Monday said that it will hear on March 22 the petition filed by activist Gautam Navlakha challengingthe Bombay High Court judgment which rejected his plea that he should be granted default bail by computing his 34-day period of house arrest in 2018.
A division bench comprising Justices UU Lalit and KM Joseph adjourned the hearing on Monday at the request of the National Investigation Agency for filing a counter affidavit to Navlakha’s plea.
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Special NIA Court’s Reasons For Denying Bail To Father Stan Swamy [read order]

24/03/2021 Rani

Special NIA Court’s Reasons For Denying Bail To Father Stan Swamy [read order]

24/03/2021

Live Law / by Sharmeen Hakim

A Special NIA Court, in Mumbai, has held that a police officer’s internal report can be considered while rejecting the bail application of an accused even after a charge sheet has been filed, if the investigating agency was granted permission for further investigation.
Special judge DE Kothalikar cited a last-minute report by an Assistant Investigating Officer to the Superintendent of Police NIA while rejecting 83-year-old tribal rights activist, Father Stan Swamy’s bail application, on Monday.
Read more/read order

Collective interest of community outweighs right of personal liberty of Stan Swamy: Special NIA Court while rejecting bail to Swamy [read order]

23/03/2021

Bar & Bench / by Neha Joshi

The material placed on record prima facie indicated that Swamy was carrying out activities to “overthrow the democracy of the nation”, the Court said.
Collective interest of community will outweigh the right of personal liberty, the Special Court observed on Monday in its order refusing to grant bail to Stan Swamy, accused in the 2018 Bhima Koregaon violence.
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Read order, documented by Bar & Bench (PDF): Fr__Stan_Swamy_v__State_of_Maharashtra

Stan Swamy had hatched a ‘serious conspiracy’ to overthrow government, says NIA court order

23/03/2021

Scroll.in / by Scroll Staff

The 83-year-old Jesuit priest was denied bail by the court on Monday in the Bhima Koregaon violence case.
The special National Investigation Agency court that rejected the bail petition of 83-year-old Jesuit priest and activist Stan Swamy said that prima facie he had conspired with members of a banned Maoist organisation to create unrest in India and to overthrow the government, PTI reported.
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NIA Court Refuses Bail To Stan Swamy In Bhima Koregaon Case

22/03/2021

Live Law / by Sharmeen Hakim

The Special NIA Court Mumbai on Monday refused to grant bail to 83-year-old Father Stan Swamy, a tribal rights activist, from Ranchi, in Jharkhand, accused in the 2018 Bhima Koregaon – Elgaar Parishad case. Special Judge under the NIA Act DE Kothlikar passed the order dismissing the bail application, which had also cited medical grounds on account of Parkinsons disease of Stan Swamy.
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Stan Swamy’s bail plea rejected by NIA court

22/03/2021

Gauri Lankesh News / by Gauri Lankesh News Desk

… Swamy’s lawyer claimed that the evidence allegedly relied upon by the NIA was correspondence with various people to seek legal aid for Swamy’s organisation, Persecuted Prisoners Solidarity Committee (PPSC), which works for undertrial Adivasis and Dalits falsely accused as Maoists…
The NIA chargesheet filed against Swamy had claimed that he is a member of banned organization CPI (Maoist), and that he was given the responsibility of spreading its activities after the arrest of many party members. Purportedly, Swamy was a staunch supporter of organisations like Vistapan Virodhi Jan Vikas Andolan and People’s Union for Civil Liberties involved in activities for CPI (Maoists), it was submitted.
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Special NIA court rejects Stan Swamy’s bail plea

22/03/2021

The Hindu / by Sonam Saigal

He has been working with tribals since decades and is currently lodged at Taloja Central Jail after being arrested from Ranchi on October 9, 2020.
The special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court on Monday rejected the bail plea filed by Jesuit priest Stan Swamy in the Bhima-Koregaon violence case.
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Our judicial system punishes a person and their family without trial: Koel Sen

22/03/2021 Rani

Koel and Shoma Sen

By Koel Sen @ fb

Last Saturday I tried to go to Byculla Jail for a mulakat with Maa but was denied. I was outside the jail waiting for 6 hours !!(I was there from 12.00PM to 6.00PM). They denied me mulakat because I had not come with the verification from the local police station that I am her daughter. Our surnames match and my Aadhar card clearly states that I am d/o of Shoma Sen. Previously I was allowed to meet her on 4-5 instances. I kept telling them that I have already done mulaquat before and that this verification is not a simple process, its taking time. I just wanted to inform my mother that my grandma, her mother-in-law had passed away. But they just kept me hanging there the entire day. I wanted to speak to Superitndnt and he just walked past me and again I waited for 2 more hours for him to get back after his lunch break which lasted from 1.00PM to 4PM. Can you believe ? …

Stan Swamy’s bail plea order reserved, court to pronounce verdict on March 22

17/03/2021 Maya

Stan Swamy’s bail plea order reserved, court to pronounce verdict on March 22

17/03/2021

Scroll.in / by Scroll Staff

Swamy’s bail plea was deferred on March 11 after the NIA filed an application to place on record additional documents in the case.
A Mumbai court on Tuesday reserved the order on the bail plea of activist and Jesuit priest Stan Swamy, arrested in the Elgar Parishad case, reported Bar & Bench. The special National Investigation Agency court will pronounce its verdict on March 22.
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NIA court to pass order on Stan Swamy bail on March 22

16/03/2021

The Hindu / by Special Correspondent

The special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court on Tuesday said it would pass an order on Father Stan Swamy’s bail in the Bhima Koregaon violence case on March 22.
Fr Swamy, 83, a Jesuit priest and activist, has been working with tribals for decades and is currently lodged at the Taloja Central Jail after being arrested from Ranchi on October 9, 2020.
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by Bar & Bench (March 16):
+++ Special NIA Court will pronounce its verdict in the bail application filed by #ElgarParishadcase accused Stan Swamy on March 22, 2021+++
+++ In the previous hearing, NIA had filed an application to place on record additional documents to be considered before the bail application is decided +++
+++ The Special Court allowed the application which was essentially to invite the Court’s attention to the case diary of the investigation. Swamy’s lawyers opposed the application stating that once chargesheet was filed then case diary cannot be considered +++
+++ After hearing both sides, the Court has closed the bail application for orders +++

Stan Swamy’s bail plea deferred by Mumbai court, next hearing on March 15

11/03/2021

Scroll.in / by Scroll Staff

The NIA has filed some additional documents in the case and Swamy’s lawyer sought time to respond to them.
The bail plea of activist and Jesuit priest Stan Swamy, arrested in the Elgar Parishad case, was deferred by a special court in Mumbai on Thursday, reported PTI.
The court, which was likely to pass the order on Thursday, deferred it after the National Investigation Agency filed some additional documents in the case and Swamy’s lawyer sought time to respond to them. The matter will now be heard on March 15, reported The Indian Express.
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Fr Stan Swamy’s bail plea order to be given on Mar 11

27/02/2021

The Times of India / by TNN

A special NIA court is likely to pronounce an order on the bail plea of Jesuit priest and tribal right rights activist, Fr Stan Swamy, arrested in in Elgar Parishad case on March 11.
NIA had opposed his bail plea and submitted that there was sufficient evidence against the 83-year-old, and the offence was grave.
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NIA court order on Stan Swamy’s bail plea on March 2

24/02/2021

The Hindu / by Special Correspondent

Stan Swamy sought bail on the ground that the prosecution had failed to establish how he had taken part or committed or incited the commission of any unlawful activity.
The special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court will pass its order on Father Stan Swamy’s petition for bail in the Bhima Koregaon violence case on March 2.
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Special Court set March 2 to announce the result of Stan Swamy’s bail application

19/02/2021

UCA News / by UCA News reporter

Suspicions are growing that the sick priest’s bail is being delayed for political reasons.
A special court is set to pronounce its verdict on the bail application of an elderly Indian Jesuit activist five months after his arrest and detention on charges of sedition.
The special court of the National Investigation Agency (NIA), the federal anti-terror agency, has set March 2 to announce the result of the bail application of 84-year-old Father Stan Swamy.
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Government’s game of prosecution – prosecution as a tool to silence critics

13/03/2021 Rani

Frontline / by A.G. Noorani

(Print edition: March 26, 2021)
The present dispensation uses prosecution as a tool to silence critics and opponents in a way that makes the legal process a punishment in itself.
Julio Ribeiro, a prince among police officers of the highest rank, notable alike for his high integrity and superb efficiency, rendered a great service by bringing home to the Indian reader the allegations of manipulating and planting in the Bhima Koregaon case. He had heard Mark Spencer, head honcho of Arsenal Consulting, a private digital forensics company. Ribeiro had heard Spencer on an Indian national TV channel “certifying that the police in India had been taken for a ride by an extremely clever hacker”. His article in The Indian Express on February 22 is entitled “The truth is out there” under the sub-heading “Allegations of manipulating and planting evidence in Bhima Koregaon case must be investigated.
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Rona Wilson Moves Bombay High Court Seeking SIT Probe

11/03/2021 Rani

Rona Wilson Moves Bombay High Court Seeking SIT Probe Into The Report That ‘Incriminating Materials Were Planted On His Laptop’

10/03/2021

Live Law / by Sharmeen Hakim

Researcher Rona Wilson, the first person to be arrested in the Bhima Koregaon Case, on Wednesday, approached the Bombay High Court seeking the formation of a Special Investigation Team to inquire into the planting of fabricated documents in his computer over a course of around 22 months.
Wilson, as well as 15 other civil rights activists and academics, in India, are incarcerated, facing charges under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) based on letters primarily retrieved from his and co-accused Surendra Gadling’s computer, to claim a conspiracy to kill the Minister and overthrow the government.
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Case Updates

11/03/2021

by Bar & Bench:
Rao also filed an affidavit placing on record his place of residence, his contact numbers as also of those relatives residing with him in compliance with the #bombayhighcourt order +++

by Bar & Bench:
#VaravaraRao has filed an application for exemption from personal appearance in the Special NIA Court as permitted in the #bombayhighcourt court order granting him temporary bail of 6 months. NIA has sought time to respond to the same +++

by Bar & Bench:
The #bombayhighcourt’s order imposed a condition that the undertrial shall attend proceedings of trial before the NIA Court as and when summoned however he may apply for exemption +++

Opposing Anand Teltumbde’s bail, NIA cites electronic evidence seized from Rona Wilson

10/03/2021 Maya

Opposing Teltumbde’s bail, NIA cites electronic evidence seized from Rona Wilson

10/03/2021

Free Press Journal / by Bhavna Uchil

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) in its reply filed recently objecting to the bail application filed by professor and activist Anand Teltumbde, has cited electronic evidence seized from the co-accused Rona Wilson.
This assumes significance in the backdrop of a report of US-based digital forensics firm Arsenal Consulting which stated in its report based on analysis that the incriminating evidence found on Wilson’s computer was ‘planted’ through a cyber attack.
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Anand Teltumbde was active member of banned CPI (Maoist), furthered their agenda: NIA to Special Court

10/03/2021

Bar & Bench / by Neha Joshi

The NIA opposed Teltumbde’s bail application claiming that Teltumbde guided his younger brother Milind to expand ‘urban naxal movements of Maoism’.
Anand Teltumbde, accused in the 2018 Bhima Koregaon violence, was an active member of banned political organisation, Communist Party of India (Maoist), the National Investigation Agency (NIA) told the special court, opposing his bail application (National Investigation Agency v. Anand Teltumbde).
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NIA opposes Anand Teltumbde’s bail plea

09/03/2021

The Times of India / by Swati Deshpande

The National Investigation Agency (NIA), while opposing a bail plea by Elgar Parishad accused Anand Teltumbde, has claimed that he “was in touch with wanted accused Milind Teltumbde and had a secret meeting with him”.
Milind is his brother who, the NIA said, had inspired to join and expand the Maoist movement.
The bail plea will be heard on March 11.
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Anand Teltumbde Helped Brother To Expand Maoist Movements, NIA Alleges

09/03/2021

Live Law / by Sharmeen Hakim

The National Investigating Agency has said that former IIT professor and academic, Anand Teltumbde, an accused in the Bhima Koregaon-Elgaar Parishad case, inspired his brother, a wanted Maoist leader, to join the movement and shared “banned literature” from his international conferences with him.
Even though the two brothers have led entirely separate lives, Teltumbde as a professor at IIT-Kharagpur and later at the Goa Institute of Management, and Milind as an alleged Maoist leader carrying a bounty of Rs 50 lakh, the agency has said that Milind used literature from Teltumbde’s conferences to expand the banned organisations movements in urban areas.
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The sad saga of Kanchan Nannaware who died waiting for justice (by Shoma Sen)

09/03/2021 Maya

The Leaflet / by Shoma Sen

While the High Court of Bombay granted medical bail to Varavara Rao who is now free for the next six months to be with his family and take care of his health, Kanchan has not been so lucky. Shoma Sen, an undertrial in the Bhima Koregaon case understands what it means as she is also battling with several ailments. Here, she explains how the husband of Kanchan’ Nannaware, her co-accused who was in the male section of the same Yerwada Jail was not consulted nor was his consent taken before her surgery. It ultimately proved fatal:
While the Elgar Parishad case received wide and detailed media coverage and many columnists, shocked by the Kafkaesque absurdities of this case were analysing and commenting on it, a political prisoner in Pune Women’s Central Jail was suffering immense hardship due to ill health, till she finally passed away in early February.
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