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Synopsis

The Bombay High Court has granted bail to Mahesh Raut accused in the Bhima Koregaon Elgar Parishad Violence. 

The order granting bail was passed by a division bench of Justice AS Gadkari and Justice Sharmila Deshmukh. 

"Prima facie Section 13 and 38 of the UAPA are applicable and section 16, 17, and 18 are not made out. Bail conditions are the same as Anand Temtumbe" the bench said. 

The counsel appearing for the National Investigation Agency sought a stay for two weeks for them to approach the Supreme Court against the high court order. 

However, the bench granted one week of time to the agency to approach the Supreme Court.

Mahesh Raut, who is accused of alleged links with CPI Maoists was earlier denied bail by the Pune Session Court and Special NIA Court in Mumbai. Raut then filed an appeal before the high court against the rejection of bail by the NIA Court.

Mahesh Sitaram Raut, booked under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act 1967 was represented by Senior Advocate Mihir Desai, who contended that National Investigating Agency had relied on the two letters which were allegedly recovered from the other two accused.

He contended that neither of the letters were found from Mahesh Raut nor were they written or signed by Raut. Desai further submitted that Raut was a student of the Tata Institute of Social Science and a former fellow of the Prime Minister Rural Development Programme.

Additionally, Desai also sought parity with the high court’s order granting bail to Anand Teltumde in November last year. He also sought parity with the Supreme Court’s order granting bail to Vernon Gonsalves and Arun Ferreira.

Additional Solicitor General, Devang Vyas appearing for the National Investigation Agency contended that the CPI Maoists work in a structured manner and it had undertaken fact fact-finding mission to propagate their ideology.

Vyas argued before the high court that Raut was a member of CPI Maoist and the letter recovered from the co-accused referred to the state as an enemy. He added that Bhima Koregaon was a larger conspiracy that attempted to topple the democratically elected government.

Vyas also contended that Raut was an active member of the CPI Maoist and he had recruited people to deploy them in the forest in furtherance of the activities of CPI Maoist.

Case title: Mahesh Raut vs NIA