The Supreme Court on Friday asked NIA to file its reply within 4 weeks to a plea by activist Gautam Navlakha, who is under house arrest at a Mumbai public library in the Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case, seeking a change of address.
A bench comprising of Justices MM Sundresh and JB Pardiwala was told by Navlakha’s lawyer that the apex court directed the NIA to file its reply in April but it has not submitted its response till date.
On November 10, 2022, the apex court allowed Navlakha, who was then lodged in Navi Mumbai’s Taloja prison, to be placed under house arrest owing to his deteriorating health.
Additional Solicitor General SV Raju, appearing for the NIA, opposed the order of house arrest.
While ordering his house arrest, the court initially directed the activist to deposit Rs 2.4 lakh as expenses to be borne by the state for making available police personnel to effectively facilitate placing the petitioner under house arrest.
Previously, on the last date of the hearing, the apex court directed Navlakha to deposit another Rs 8 lakh as an expense for making available police personnel for his security.
The case relates to alleged inflammatory speeches made at the Elgar Parishad conclave held in Pune on December 31, 2017, which police claim triggered violence the other day near the Koregaon-Bhima war memorial on the outskirts of the city.
