Read Time: 08 minutes

Synopsis

The Bombay High Court in its order granting bail to Bhima Koregaon accused Gautam Navlakha noted that Navlakha only intended to commit the terrorist act which did not transform into any preparation or attempt.

“In the present case, the incriminating material as adverted herein above does not in any manner prima facie leads to draw an inference that, Appellant has committed or indulged in a ‘terrorist act’ as contemplated under Section 15 of UAP Act. According to us, the record prima facie indicate that, it was at the most the intention of the Appellant to commit the alleged crime and not more than it. The said intention has not been further transformed into preparation or attempt to commit a terrorist act, to attract Section 15 of the UAP Act.,” the order reads.

The division bench of the high court comprising Justice AS Gadkari and Justice SG Dige on 19th December granted bail to the Bhima Koregaon accused Gautam Navlakha.

The division bench in its order noted that there was no covert or overt terrorist act which was committed by Navlakha.

“Even though in the said documents, the authors of it have expressed their intention to cause fatality to the politically influential persons or to cause tremendous disturbance in the Society at large, the Appellant only being a member of the party cannot be prima facie held to be a co-conspirator to it. From the material on record, it appears to us that, no covert or overt terrorist act has been attributed to the Appellant,” the order states.

Regarding the letter written by Navlakha to the Judge of the U.S. Court requesting to consider clemency to Ghulam Fai, the bench said that there was no correlation with the present crime alleged against Navlakha and it appeared that, the said letter was written by Navlakha in his individual capacity and at the most it can be said, being a member of his party and nothing more.

With respect to the documents wherein the name simply referred to as ‘Gautam’ is concerned the bench said that,

“..there is another person by name Gautam @ Kosa @ Gopanna @ Sadha, who is the Central Committee Member of the CPI (M) and therefore it cannot be safely inferred that, it is the Appellant only who has been referred to in those documents. According to us, the identity of the Appellant being the same person ‘Gautam’ is in doubt as far as those documents are concerned. At this stage prima facie we cannot presume that, ‘Gautam’ is the same person as the identity of the said ‘Gautam’ is yet to be established beyond reasonable doubt by the prosecution,” the order states.

The high court while granting bail to Navlakha said that considering that Navlakha was in pre-trail incarceration for more than 3 years and the possibility of trial being concluded in the near future is very bleak.

“the Appellant is in pre-trial incarceration for more than three years and eight months. The charge-sheet consists of about 20,000 pages in 54 Volumes and the prosecution has cited 370 witnesses in it. The learned Judge of the trial Court has submitted a report dated 18th September, 2022 stating that, it will require more than a year to frame charge. As a matter of fact, till date the trial Court has not framed charge. The possibility of trial of the Appellant being concluded in near future is very bleak,” the order states.

Gautam Navlakha was arrested with the other accused in the Bhima Koregaon Violence case of 2018 after which he was kept in Taloja Jail. In April 2022, the Bombay High Court dismissed the plea moved by Navlakha, seeking direction to be placed under house arrest till the completion of the trial. Navlakha had demanded transfer from Taloja Prison on grounds of his advanced age and medical ailments. 

In 2022 October, the Supreme Court allowed his plea to shift to house arrest. Navlkha had approached the high court after a Special NIA Court rejected his bail plea in September 2022.

Case Title: Gautam Navlakha vs National Investigating Agency