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NIA challenges activist Sudha Bharadwaj’s bail in Supreme Court

NIA challenges activist Sudha Bharadwaj’s bail in Supreme Court

NIA challenges activist Sudha Bharadwaj’s bail in Supreme Court

03/12/2021

Scroll.in / by Scroll Staff

She was granted default bail in the Bhima Koregaon case by the Bombay High Court on Wednesday.
The National Investigation Agency has moved the Supreme Court against the bail granted to lawyer-activist Sudha Bharadwaj by the Bombay High Court in the Bhima Koregaon violence case, Live Law reported on Thursday.
Bharadwaj, who has been in jail since 2018, was granted default bail by a two-judge bench of High Court on Wednesday.
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NIA Moves Supreme Court Against Bombay High Court’s Order Granting Bail To Sudha Bharadwaj

02/12/2021

Live Law / by Sparsh Upadhyay

The National Investigative Agency (NIA) has moved Supreme Court challenging the Bombay High Court’s December 1 order granting bail to lawyer-activist Sudha Bharadwaj in the Bhima Koregaon case.
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Sudha Bharadwaj bail challenged by NIA before Supreme Court

02/12/2021

Bar & Bench / by Debayan Roy

The Bombay High Court had granted default bail to Sudha Bharadwaj on the ground that the extension of time for investigation and detention under the UAPA and CrPC had not been done by a court of competent jurisdiction.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has moved the Supreme Court challenging the default bail granted to Bhima Koregaon accused Sudha Bharadwaj by the Bombay High Court [National Investigation Agency v. Sudha Bharadwaj].
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How lawyer Sudha Bharadwaj got bail after three years in jail / The Story of Her Incarceration

How lawyer Sudha Bharadwaj got bail after three years in jail / The Story of Her Incarceration

Scroll.in / by Umang Poddar

Still, it will take a week for her to be freed.
On Wednesday, a two-judge bench of the Bombay High Court granted bail to Sudha Bharadwaj, an activist-lawyer who has been jailed since August 2018 in connection with the Bhima Koregaon case.
However, she will have to wait for a week until December 8 to appear before a special judge of the National Investigation Agency Court in Mumbai, who will decide the terms of the bail.
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Video: The Story of Sudha Bharadwaj’s Incarceration

en | 6:41min | 2021

By The Quint

Arrested on 28 August 2018, Bharadwaj has been in pre-trial detention for over three years.
Sudha Bharadwaj, a human rights lawyer, defending India’s indigenous communities, and a protector of worker’s rights, had been serving pre-trial detention since August 2018, until the Bombay High Court accepted her bail plea on 1 December.
Watch video

PUCL Chhattisgarh welcomes the granting bail to Advocate Sudha Bharadwaj

PUCL Chhattisgarh welcomes the granting bail to Advocate Sudha Bharadwaj

PUCL Chhattisgarh welcomes the granting bail to Advocate Sudha Bharadwaj

01/12/2021

By PUCL Chhattisgarh

Press Release
PUCL Chhattisgarh welcomes the granting bail to Advocate Sudha Bharadwaj by the Bombay High Court and at the same time is dissapointed that the other 8 co-accused have been denied bail.
It should be mentioned that the violence inflicted by Hindu groups on and after the Bhima Koregaon celebrations in January 2018 have cost lives and resulted in several incarcerations. Including the 8 whose bail was rejected by the Bombay High Court, however, a total of 16 people have been falsely implicated in the Bhima Koregaon Case and have been in jail for years on fabricated charges under the draconian UAPA. Many others have been targetted, arrested and had their homes raided.
Father Stan Swami, one of the 16, aged 84, lost his life in custody while awaiting bail.
In Chhattisgarh there are hundreds of Adivasis who have been imprisoned under the UAPA and have been awaiting bail for years. On March 9 this year, at a program to mark International Womens Day and speak out against sexual violence inflicted on women by the police and paramilitary in Bastar, Human Rights Defender Hidme Markam was arrested and later jailed under the same draconian act.
While we eagerly await the release of Advocate Sudha Bharadwaj, and for her to return amongst us, we also pledge to strengthen the struggle for release of all those imprisoned under false charges, against the UAPA and against the countrys casteist carceral system.

Bombay HC grants default bail to Sudha Bharadwaj, but declines the same to eight other accused

01/12/2021

The Leaflet / by Sabah Gurmaj and Paras Nath Singh

The Bombay High Court grants default bail to Sudha Bharadwaj in the Bhima Koregaon case on the ground that the court which took cognizance of the chargesheet against her was not competent, while it denied the same to the other accused in the case, because they did not claim their right to default bail in time. Paras Nath Singh and Sabah Gurmaj write about the High Court’s application of the principles of default bail in these cases.
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Why the HC granted default bail to Sudha Bharadwaj and not to others / Understanding the Judgement (audio)

Why the HC granted default bail to Sudha Bharadwaj and not to others / Understanding the Judgement (audio)

Audio: Understanding the Judgement of the Bombay High Court

01/12/2021

By PUCL

Date: Dec 1, 2021
Speakers: Mihir Desai and others
In order to understand the judgement in the Bhima Koregaon, default statutory bail case granting bail to Sudha Bharadwaj (National Secretary of the PUCL), but rejecting the bail of 8 others who had also similarly applied, namely Dr. Varavara Rao, Dr. Shoma Sen, Surendra Gadling, Vernon Gonsalves, Sudhir Dhawale, Rona Wilson, Arun Ferreira, Mahesh Raut,
we are holding a meeting on December 1st, 2021 from 8pm to 10pm.
All are welcome to listen to the lawyers share their views on the judgement.
V. Suresh (General Secretary PUCL )
Kavita Srivastava (National Secretary)

Listen to recording

Why the Bombay High Court granted default bail to Sudha Bharadwaj and not to others [read order]

01/12/2021

Bar & Bench / by Neha Joshi

Sudha Bharadwaj’s application for default bail was pending on the date the application for extension of time to file chargesheet was made.
While granting default bail to lawyer and activist Sudha Bharadwaj on Wednesday, the Bombay High Court refused bail to eight other co-accused in the Bhima Koregaon case.
The Bench of Justices SS Shinde and NJ Jamadar made certain interesting observations in the 120-page order while deciding the pleas filed by Bharadwaj and 8 others challenging orders of the Pune Sessions Judges.
Read more/read judgement

Time For UAPA Probe Was Extended By A Court Which Lacked Competent Jurisdiction: Bombay HC [read order]

01/12/2021

Live Law / by Sharmeen Hakim

In its detailed order granting default bail to Sudha Bharadwaj the Bombay High Court said that Additional Sessions Judge of Pune KD Vadane was not authorized to extend the time for Pune Police to file the charge sheet under provision of the UAPA Act on November 26, 2018 and therefore she was entitled for default bail.
Read more/read judgement

Bombay HC grants default bail to Sudha Bharadwaj, but declines the same to eight other accused

01/12/2021

The Leaflet / by Sabah Gurmaj and Paras Nath Singh

The Bombay High Court grants default bail to Sudha Bharadwaj in the Bhima Koregaon case on the ground that the court which took cognizance of the chargesheet against her was not competent, while it denied the same to the other accused in the case, because they did not claim their right to default bail in time. Paras Nath Singh and Sabah Gurmaj write about the High Court’s application of the principles of default bail in these cases.
Read more

BREAKING: Bombay HC Grants Default Bail To Sudha Bharadwaj; Refuses Bail To 8 Other Accused

BREAKING: Bombay HC Grants Default Bail To Sudha Bharadwaj; Refuses Bail To 8 Other Accused

BREAKING: Bombay HC Grants Default Bail To Sudha Bharadwaj; Refuses Bail To 8 Other Accused

01/12/2021

Live Law / by Sharmeen Hakim

The Bombay High Court on Wednesday granted default bail to lawyer-activist Sudha Bharadwaj in the 2018 Bhima Koregaon – Elgar Parishad caste violence case.
However, the Court rejected the bail applications of the 8 other accused Sudhir Dawale, Dr P Varavara Rao, Rona Wilson, Advocate Surendra Gadling, Professor Shoma Sen, Mahesh Raut, Vernon Gonsalves and Arun Ferreira. They were arrested between June – August 2018.
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Sudha Bharadwaj granted default bail by Bombay High Court; plea of 8 others rejected

01/12/2021

Bar & Bench / by Neha Joshi

Sudha Bharadwaj and 8 others had challenged the jurisdiction of the Pune Sessions Judge in 2019 who they submitted was not the Special NIA judge and hence not competent to hear their applications under UAPA.
In a significant development, the Bombay High Court on Wednesday allowed the default bail plea filed by Bhima Koregaon accused advocate Sudha Bharadwaj [Sudha Bharadwaj v. National Investigation Agency].
Read more

Click to enlarge

Also read:
● Bombay High Court Reserves Order On Default Bail Plea Of Eight Accused In Bhima Koregaon (Live Law / Sep 2021)

‘Release and Stop Harassing Khurram Parvez, Sudha Bharadwaj and Human Rights Defenders’

‘Release and Stop Harassing Khurram Parvez, Sudha Bharadwaj and Human Rights Defenders’

The Citizen / by the Citizen Bureau

32 civil society organisations from across Asia, the Pacific and Europe have called on the Indian government and courts to immediately and unconditionally release “human rights defenders” including Khurram Parvez and Sudha Bharadwaj, and to repeal the “unjust law” UAPA. They also demand bail and compensation for those jailed under UAPA but never tried, or the high proportion found not guilty.
The full statement, signed by groups in Bangladesh, Malaysia, Spain, Australia, Pakistan, Taiwan, the Netherlands and others, follows.
Read full statement

Sudha Bharadwaj is a true patriot and heir of the Ghadar movement

Sudha Bharadwaj is a true patriot and heir of the Ghadar movement

Countercurrents / by Gurpreet Singh

Currently incarcerated under trumped up charges in the world’s so called largest democracy, Sudha Bharadwaj is one of the dozens of scholars and activists locked up in the Indian jails.
Bharadwaj, who turned 60 on November 1, is a lawyer who has been advocating for the rights of the poor and marginalized, especially Adivasis or the Indigenous peoples of India who are being evicted from their traditional mineral-rich lands by the extraction industry with the backing of the government.
Read more

Also read:
● As Sudha Bharadwaj Spends 4th Birthday in Jail, a Reminder That UAPA Enables Her Incarceration (The Wire / Nov 1, 2021)

As Sudha Bharadwaj Spends 4th Birthday in Jail, a Reminder That UAPA Enables Her Incarceration

As Sudha Bharadwaj Spends 4th Birthday in Jail, a Reminder That UAPA Enables Her Incarceration


Chhattisgarh, Nov 1, 2021

The Wire / by Mahtab Alam

In addition to her legal battles, Sudha Bharadwaj also fought to seek justice for the marginalised in Chhattisgarh.
On Monday, November 1, Chhattisgarh celebrated 21 years of its statehood. On November 1, 2000, the state was carved out of Madhya Pradesh. It was a result of longstanding demand and sustained struggles of local organisations and the population. One of the organisations which played a key role in the formation of the new state is Chhattisgarh Mukti Morcha (CMM) or Chhattisgarh Liberation Front. The CMM was formed in the early 1980s under the charismatic leadership of trade union leader Shankar Guha Niyogi. He was murdered in September 1991. And one of those who decided to carry forward the unfinished work of Niyogi is his fellow comrade from early years of activism – Sudha Bharadwaj, a trade union activist, lawyer and teacher.
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We salute Sudha Bharadwaj and her fight for Justice (various statements)

We salute Sudha Bharadwaj and her fight for Justice (various statements)

PUCL salutes Sudha Bharadwaj and her fight for Justice!

01/11/2021

By People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL)

Click to enlarge

Chhattisgarh, Nov 1, 2021


Video (3min): Song by CMM comrades


Watch video 1

Video (1:30min): Slogans by PCSS comrades


Watch video 2

#ReleaseSudhaBharadwak (Nov 1)

by Indira Jaising

by Chhattisgarh Bachao Andolan (CBA) Raipur
When the government doesn’t have an answer to the storm of questions raised against it, it resorts to arresting those speaking the truth fearlessly. Shame! #ReleaseSudhaBhardwaj #FreeAllPoliticalPrisoners #RepealUAPA

by Tribal Army
We demand human rights activist sudha Bhardwaj to be released.
Happy Birthday Madam

by NAPM India
#SudhaBharadwaj is one of the finest trade unionists & public spirited lawyers who has always taken on unjust & powerful forces. We wish Sudha real liberation on her 60th. #3years of her incarceration & that of all political prisoners is a shame, a huge loss & unforgivable crime.

by Meera Sanghamitra
Working silently, yet resiliently for over three decades amidst adivasis, workers & oppressed sections in #Chhattisgarh, #Sudha has inspired an entire generation to understand the combined value of legal activism & on-ground unionizing. Happy birthday, Comrade. You are a star.

by Meena Kanasamy
History will remember her as a fierce lioness who stood up to this regime.

Chitrangada
It’s her 60th birthday tday & she is spending it in prison, where she has been since 3+ yrs, without bail or trial.
The Bombay HC finished hearing her last bail plea on 4th Aug. Still no ruling.

by AISA Delhi Universtity

Sudha Bharadwaj goes through her 4th birthday in Jail for fighting for the rights of people! While Criminals like Anurag Thakura and Kapil Mishra are not only Roaming free but are being awarded Ministries by the Government! #ReleaseAllPoliticalPrisoners #releaseBK16 #RepealUAPA

by CIVICUS

Today human rights lawyer & activist Sudha Bharadwaj will celebrate her 60th birthday in prison She was arrested on fabricated charges 3 years ago and has been denied bail. Call on the govt to #FreeSudhaBharadwaj immediately: https://web.civicus.org/India1121 | #StandAsMyWitness

… #ReleaseSudhaBharadwaj

Release All Political Prisoners & Revoke UAPA

29/10/2021

By TribalSpaces

Click to enlarge
No bail, no trial: Sudha Bharadwaj turns 60 in jail / Another birthday in detention

No bail, no trial: Sudha Bharadwaj turns 60 in jail / Another birthday in detention

No bail, no trial: Sudha Bharadwaj turns 60 in jail!

01/11/2021

Sabrangindia / by Sabrangindia

The human rights defender has been accused of waging a war against the government and booked under terror charges in the Bhima Koregaon case
Trade Unionist, lawyer, professor, writer, Sudha Bharadwaj was arrested on August 28, 2018 and has been lodged in Byculla jail since then. She has been accused of criminal conspiracy, sedition under the Indian Penal Code and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act charges of funding a terrorist activity, conspiracy, being a member of terrorist gang or organisation, and supporting a terrorist organisation.
Born on November 1, 1961, Bharadwaj has turned 60 today. This is the fourth birthday she has had to spend behind bars.
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Human rights defender Sudha Bharadwaj spends another birthday in detention

01/11/2021

By CIVICUS

Human rights defender and lawyer Sudha Bharadwaj will be spending her 60th birthday in detention today, more than three years after she was arrested on baseless charges under a draconian anti-terror law. Global civil society alliance CIVICUS calls on the Indian government to halt the ongoing persecution against her and release Bharadwaj immediately and unconditionally.
Read full statement

‘If You Try to Be Safe and in the Middle, You Will Never Succeed’

01/11/2021

The Wire / by Monobina Gupta

Note: This article was originally published on July 18, 2018, and was republished on November 1, 2021, Sudha Bharadwaj’s 60th birthday.

Sudha Bharadwaj has spent nearly three decades working with the most marginalised sections of people in the conflict-ridden state of Chhattisgarh. Away from the media glare, her ear firmly to the ground, the trade union activist and lawyer has been up against powerful corporates and state administrations headed both by the present BJP dispensation and before that, the Congress party.
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