A special NIA court in Mumbai recently held that Bhima Koregaon accused Gautam Navlakha was a member of banned terrorist organisation Communist Party of India (Maoist), which attacked and killed many government security forces while rejecting his bail plea.
The Special National Investigation Agency (NIA) judge Rajesh Katariya opined that there were reasonable grounds to believe that the allegations against Navlakha were prima facie true.
“The supplementary chargesheet and documents relied by the prosecution prima facie shows that applicant is active member of said banned terrorist organization and he carries out activities in furtherance of object of said organization. Various documents are seized from applicant during his house search through electronic gazettes. The documents produced with chargesheet shows active involvement of applicant in crime and participation in conspiracy…It also shows that he underwent weapon training with other accused,” the order reads.
The sessions court also considered the chargesheet, which revealed a link between Navlakha and Kashmiri separatist Syed Ghulam Nabi Fai, as well as Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) General.
While dismissing Navlakha’s bail application, the judge remarked, “Considering totality of material, Navlakha’s role cannot be segregated from role of the co-accused in the case and there are reasonable grounds for believing that the accusation against Navlakha are prima facie true.”
In August 2018, Navlakha, who is a human rights activist and former secretary of the People’s Union for Democratic Rights (PUDR), was arrested.
On November 10, 2022, the Apex Court granted his request to return to house arrest for a month. On December 13, it was extended.
He is currently residing in the Thane district of Navi Mumbai.
On September 5, 2022, Navlakha approached the High Court after a special NIA court denied his bail application.
The High Court ruled that the bail application requires a new hearing before the special court and remanded the case.
