P Chidambaram writes: Why are the accused denied bail? Pre-charge evidence, framing of charges, trial and arguments will — not may, it is will — take many years. Should the accused be in jail until the trial is over? Is pre-trial incarceration a substitute for trial, proof, conviction and punishment?
… In current times, there is no story more shocking than the story of the 16 accused in what is known as the Bhima Koregaon case. Read more
Liberty is too precious to be lost: A former SC judge on the decay in the criminal justice system
22/07/2022
Scroll.in / by Madan B Lokur
A starting point can be making some trial judges realise that they need to stop acting as a rubber stamp of the police in matters of arrest.
“What’s going on?” a young lady asks quizzically in a television advertisement. The same question must be asked of criminal justice and India’s prisons.
Bail, not jail has been reduced to a mere slogan to be whispered once in a while. The reality is jail, not bail. Another reality is that innocent until proven guilty has been transformed to guilty until proven innocent. Read more
Supreme Court Posts Varavara Rao’s Bail Plea For Final Hearing On August 10; Interim Bail Extended
Supreme Court to hear Varavara Rao’s plea for permanent medical bail on August 10; he is not required to surrender until further orders
19/07/2022
The Leaflet / by Sarah Thanawala
Decks are cleared for the Supreme Court’s final hearing in the matter with the issue of formal notice to NIA.
The Supreme Court, on Tuesday, issued a notice to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on a petition filed by activist, poet, and teacher, P.V. Varavara Rao, an accused in the Bhima Koregaon-Elgar Parishad case, against the Bombay High Court’s order refusing him a permanent medical bail. Read more
Supreme Court Posts Varavara Rao’s Bail Plea For Final Hearing On August 10; Interim Bail Extended
19/07/2022
Live Law / by Rintu Mariam Biju
The Supreme Court on Tuesday posted the regular bail plea of Telugu poet and Bhima Koregaon – Elgar Parishad accused P Varavara Rao on medical grounds for final hearing on August 10.
While doing so, a Bench comprising Justices UU Lalit, Ravindra Bhat and Sudhanshu Dhulia also formally issued notice, seeking the response of the National Investigation Authority.
“Considering the nature of controversy of the matter, the matter shall be disposed of in the next occasion. Since we had not issued notice earlier, issue notice, returnable on August 10, 2022.” Read more
SC extends Varavara Rao’s interim bail till further orders, issues notice to NIA
19/07/2022
Scroll.in / by Scroll Staff
The court also said that it will hear the activist’s plea for permanent medical bail for the final time on August 10.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday issued a notice to the National Investigation Agency in connection with a plea filed by activist Varavara Rao seeking permanent bail on medical grounds, PTI reported.
A bench headed by Justices UU Lalit, Ravindra Bhat and Sudhanshu Dhulia also extended Rao’s interim bail till further orders. Read more
Varavara Rao is currently on bail on medical grounds, and had challenged in the Supreme Court the High Court order rejecting his appeal.
… Incidentally, the High Court had also noted the claims made by Rao’s counsel on the lack of medical facilities at the Taloja prison and the poor hygienic conditions there, saying there was substance in the argument.
In the trial in the case, the Elgar Parishad accused have repeatedly brought up the lack of facilities in prison, and denial of access to the same. Read more
Supreme Court Extends Interim Protection Of Varavara Rao; Adjourns Bail Plea To July 19
Supreme Court Extends Interim Protection Of Varavara Rao; Adjourns Bail Plea To July 19
12/07/2022
Live Law / by Livelaw News Network
The Supreme Court on Monday adjourned to July 19 the hearing of the petition filed by octogenarian P Varavara Rao seeking bail in the Bhima Koregaon case.
A bench comprising Justices UU Lalit, S Ravindra Bhat and Sudhanshu Dhulia granted the adjournment at a request made by Solicitor General of India, Tushar Mehta.
The SG requested for adjournment and agreed that the interim protection given by the Bombay High Court to Rao from surrender, which is expiring today, can be extended. Read more
SC extends activist Varavara Rao’s interim bail till further orders
12/07/2022
Scroll.in / by Scroll Staff
His plea seeking permanent medical bail will be heard on July 19.
The Supreme Court on Monday extended the interim bail granted to activist Varavara Rao till further orders, Live Law reported. The court will hear the activist’s plea seeking permanent medical bail on July 19. Read more
Supreme Court to hear Varavara Rao’s appeal against Bombay High Court’s refusal to extend his medical bail
30/06/2022
The Leaflet / by The Leaflet
Earlier today, a vacation bench of the Supreme Court directed its registry to list on July 11 the appeal filed by poet, activist and teacher P. Varavara Rao, accused of inciting violence in the Bhima Koregaon case, against the Bombay High Court’s order refusing to extend his medical bail.
Senior advocate Anand Grover mentioned the appeal before a vacation bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and J.B. Pardiwala, seeking an urgent listing of the appeal, given that the due time for Rao to surrender is expiring on July 13. Read more
SC to hear Varavara Rao’s appeal against Bombay HC’s refusal to extend his medical bail
Poet recalls how Stan Swamy had died in custody a year ago shortly before his bail application was to be heard.
The Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to hear a plea for regular bail from poet and Elgaar Parishad-Maoist links accused P. Varavara Rao, 81, who cited multiple ailments including Parkinson’s Disease and expressed fear that further imprisonment would kill him.
Rao, now out on interim bail, recalled how 84-year-old Father Stan Swamy, a fellow accused and Parkinson’s patient, had died in custody a year ago shortly before his bail application was to be heard. Read more
Supreme Court to hear Varavara Rao’s appeal against Bombay High Court’s refusal to extend his medical bail
30/06/2022
The Leaflet / by The Leaflet
Earlier today, a vacation bench of the Supreme Court directed its registry to list on July 11 the appeal filed by poet, activist and teacher P. Varavara Rao, accused of inciting violence in the Bhima Koregaon case, against the Bombay High Court’s order refusing to extend his medical bail.
Senior advocate Anand Grover mentioned the appeal before a vacation bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and J.B. Pardiwala, seeking an urgent listing of the appeal, given that the due time for Rao to surrender is expiring on July 13. Read more
Bhima Koregaon accused Varavara Rao moves Supreme Court for bail
30/06/2022
Bar & Bench / by Abhimanyu Hazarika
The matter will be listed on July 11 after it was mentioned by Senior Advocate Anand Grover today before a vacation Bench of Justices Surya Kant and JB Pardiwala.
Telugu poet Varavara Rao, who is an accused in the 2018 Bhima Koregaon violence, has approached the Supreme Court seeking permanent bail on medical grounds.
Rao has challenged an April 13 judgment of the Bombay High Court which had rejected his plea for bail. Read more
Further Incarceration Will Ring Death Knell For Him: Varavara Rao Moves Supreme Court Seeking Bail In Bhima Koregaon Case
30/06/2022
Live Law / by Srishti Ojha
The Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to hear on 11th July a petition filed by Telugu poet and Bhima Koregaon – Elgar Parishad accused P Varavara Rao challenging Bombay High Court’s order refusing to grant him permanent medical bail.
A bench comprising Justice Surya Kant and Justice JB Pardiwala issued the direction after the matter was mentioned by Senior Advocate Anand Grover. Read more
82-Year-Old Varavara Rao Moves Supreme Court for Bail in Bhima Koregaon Case
30/06/2022
The Quint / by The Quint
The matter has been listed for 11 July, after Rao’s plea was mentioned by his counsel before a vacation bench.
82-year-old Telugu poet Varavara Rao, an accused in the Bhima Koregaon case, approached the Supreme Court seeking permanent bail on medical grounds on Thursday, 30 June.
The matter has been listed for 11 July, after Rao’s plea was mentioned by his counsel, senior advocate Anand Grover before a vacation bench of Justices Surya Kant and JB Pardiwala, reported Bar and Bench. Read more
Police Linked to Hacking Campaign to Frame Indian Activists
16/06/2022
Wired.com / by Andy Greenberg
New details connect police in India to a plot to plant evidence on victims’ computers that led to their arrest.
Police forces around the world have increasingly used hacking tools to identify and track protesters, expose political dissidents’ secrets, and turn activists’ computers and phones into inescapable eavesdropping bugs. Now, new clues in a case in India connect law enforcement to a hacking campaign that used those tools to go an appalling step further: planting false incriminating files on targets’ computers that the same police then used as grounds to arrest and jail them. Read more
by Andy Greenberg / @a_greenberg (June 16):
A wild, appalling story: A group of hackers fabricated evidence on the PCs of Indian human rights activists who were then arrested for terrorism and jailed. Now researchers have found a direct link between those hackers and the police making the arrests. Read full thread
Fabricated evidence planted to implicate Elgaar activists, says US magazine
18/06/2022
The Telegraph / by Pheroze L. Vincent
Maharashtra govt and Centre have resisted the admission of the multiple revelations of hacking as evidence and consistently opposed bail in the case.
America’s Wired magazine has alleged links between Pune police and hackers who it says planted fabricated evidence on some of the accused in the Elgaar Parishad-Maoist links case, which witnessed the arrest of 16 activists, writers, academics and lawyers.
Earlier, two digital security firms in the US had revealed the planting of electronic evidence – claims that the prosecution has rejected, with the investigators ignoring calls to review the evidence. Read more
Security Researchers Claim Link Between Pune Police And Hacking Campaign Against Bhima Koregaon Accused
16/06/2022
The Wire / by The Wire Staff
The recovery email id and phone number on accounts of Wilson, Rao and Babu were allegedly linked to a Pune police officer.
Security researchers in the United States have claimed that they unearthed new evidence that links the Pune police to the hacking of e-mail accounts of activists Rona Wilson and Varavara Rao and Delhi University professor Hany Babu. This is the first time that the state’s involvement has been directly established in the case. Read more
Report links cop to hacking bid on Bhima accused
16/06/2022
Hindustan Times / by HT Correspondent
There are links between a Pune police official and a hacking campaign that targeted suspects in the Bhima Koregaon case, a report by news website Wired said on Thursday, citing information from an unnamed whistleblower from a company that provided email services to the targets.
The report is the latest in a series of clues that bring into question the provenance of the evidence used in the Bhima Koregaon case, in which several activists have been accused of terrorism through their alleged links to the extremist Maoist rebellion. Read more
Pune Police allegedly planted fake evidence on devices of Bhima Koregaon accused, reports Wired
16/06/2022
Scroll.in / by Scroll Staff
The recovery email id and phone number on accounts of Rona Wilson, Varavara Rao and Hany Babu were linked to a police officer, a cybersecurity firm has claimed.
A US-based cybersecurity company has claimed that the Pune Police hacked electronic devices owned by activists Rona Wilson, Varavara Rao and Hany Babu and planted fake evidence on them, reported Wired magazine in the US. Read more
In the Elgar Parishad-Bhima Koregaon case, leading activists, lawyers, scholars and artists have been arrested without trial under the charges of the Indian Penal Code and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 (‘UAPA’). According to the police, allegedly provocative statements and speeches made at the Elgar Parishad meeting in Pune on December 31, 2017, instigated the violence at Bhima Koregaon the following day on January 1, 2018 that led to death of one and injuries to several others …
The Leaflet brings to its readers a brief profile of each of the arrested persons, and the developments in the case pertaining to each. Read more
‘Death of Imagination’ / Hindutva, Sangh Parivar, UAPA: Penguin Censors Words From VV Rao’s Book
Penguin Random House Drops ‘Hindutva’, Other Words From Varavara Rao’s Latest Book: Report
05/06/2022
The Wire / by The Wire Staff
The said words, from the book which is yet to be released, have been removed by the publishers’ legal team purportedly to avoid attracting charges such as sedition or defamation.
Penguin Random House India’s legal team has allegedly removed words like ‘Hindutva’, ‘Sangh Parivar’ and ‘saffronisation’ from Telugu poet Varavara Rao’s latest book Varavara Rao: A Revolutionary Poet, the Quint has reported.
The book, which is yet to be released, will become the first English-translated collection of poems by the 81-year-old Rao, who was arrested in connection with the Bhima Koregaon case. He is at present out on medical bail. Read more
‘Death of Imagination’: Meena Kandasamy on Penguin Censoring Varavara Rao’s Book
04/06/2022
The Quint / by Nikhila Henry
Meena Kandasamy, an editor of Varavara Rao’s book, says climate of fear among publishers is real in India.
Penguin Random House (PRH), a leading publisher in India, has prescribed removal of several words including ‘Hindutva,’ ‘Sangh Parivar,’ and ‘Ayodhya,’ from Telugu poet Varavara Rao’s book – Varavara Rao: The Revolutionary Poet.
Poet, novelist, and translator Meena Kandasamy, who is one of the editors of the book, speaks to The Quint in an interview about the legal vetting. Read more
Hindutva, Sangh Parivar, UAPA: Penguin Censors Words From Varavara Rao’s Book
03/06/2022
The Quint / by Nkikhila Henry
References to ‘revolution,’ saffronisation’ and ‘Ayodhya’ in poet Varavara Rao’s poems were flagged by Penguin.
Penguin Random House India, a leading publisher in the country, has prescribed censorship of Telugu poet Varavara Rao’s poems for fear of being slapped with sedition and defamation charges, reveal comments from the legal team of the publisher, posted on the latest edit of the book Varavara Rao: A Revolutionary Poet. Read more
Bombay High Court rejects default bail plea of Varavara Rao and seven other accused
04/05/2022
The Leaflet / by Sabah Gurmat
The Bombay High Court earlier today dismissed a petition filed by eight activists, academics and lawyers accused in the Bhima Koregaon (Elgar Parishad) violence case, who sought review of an earlier order which dismissed their appeal for default bail.
A plea seeking default bail was filed by P. Varavara Rao, Vernon Gonsalves, Arun Ferreira, Sudhir Dhawale, Shoma Sen, Rona Wilson, Mahesh Raut and Surendra Gadling. Read more
Bombay HC Says Won’t Review Refusal of Default Bail to 3 Activists
04/05/2022
The Wire / by The Wire Staff
Varavara Rao, Arun Ferreira and Vernon Gonsalves’ petition said the high court’s previous order was based on a “factual error”.
The Bombay high court on Wednesday dismissed a petition filed by Varavara Rao and two other activists, arrested in the Elgar Parishad case, seeking a review of an earlier order of the high court which refused them default bail.
The high court said it finds it difficult to hold there was any factual error in its earlier judgement and requires a review. Read more
Bombay HC Rejects Review Plea Seeking Default Bail To Varavara Rao, Vernon Gonsalves & Arun Ferreira
04/05/2022
Live Law / by Sharmeen Hakim
The Bombay High Court has rejected a review application filed by three accused in the Bhima Koregaon – Elgar Parishad Case seeking bail and factual corrections in the order refusing them default bail.
The court disposed of a review application filed by the three, seeking factual corrections in the order refusing them default bail and subsequently release. Read more
Bombay High Court rejects default bail plea of Varavara Rao, Arun Ferreira, Vernon Gonsalves
04/05/2022
Bar & Bench / by Neha Joshi
The review application by Varavara Rao, Arun Ferreira and Vernon Gonsalves claimed there was factual error in the High Court’s December 2021 judgment, which if not rectified, will lead to “gross miscarriage of justice”.
The Bombay High Court on Wednesday rejected the plea filed by three accused Varavara Rao, Arun Ferreira and Vernon Gonsalves in the Bhima Koregaon case seeking review of the High Court’s December 2021 judgment refusing them default bail. [P Varavara Rao & Ors. v. State of Maharashtra & Anr.] Read more
by Andy Greenberg / @a_greenberg (June 16): 
