Activist Gautam Navlakha Likely To Be Released From Jail Tomorrow

Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case accused Gautam Navlakha, whose plea seeking to be placed under house arrest was allowed by the Supreme Court on Thursday, was not released from prison till late in the evening as formalities could not be completed.

Mr Navlakha's partner Sahba Husain said the activist would not be able to leave the Taloja jail, located in Navi Mumbai, during the day.

"The Supreme Court has given 48 hours (for implementing the order). There is a lot of paperwork to be done including furnishing local surety as directed by the apex court and also the deposit amount," she told PTI.

If the formalities are completed, then Mr Navlakha may walk out of jail on Friday, said one of his lawyers.

Earlier in the day, Mr Husain expressed happiness over the Supreme Court order allowing 70-year-old Navlakha to be placed under house arrest for one month.

"We are happy even if it is for a month. The order says he will have to be in Mumbai. We have seen certain places... but we are yet to zero in. We have to make arrangements now," she said.

The activist has been lodged in the Taloja prison since his arrest in the case in August 2018.

The Supreme Court on Thursday allowed Mr Navlakha's request for house arrest, saying that prima facie there was no reason to reject his medical report. A bench of Justices K M Joseph and Hrishikesh Roy also said the house arrest order should be implemented within 48 hours. In October 2021, he was shifted to 'anda cell' (high security barracks) and has been kept in solitary confinement since then, Mr Husain had claimed.

The SC directed Mr Navlakha to deposit Rs 2.4 lakh, the estimated expenses of police deployment outside his house as per the National Investigation Agency (NIA).

The top court also said that Navlakha will not be allowed to use a computer and the Internet during house arrest.

The case relates to alleged inflammatory speeches made at the Elgar Parishad, a conclave held in Pune on December 31, 2017 which the police claimed triggered violence the next day near the Koregaon-Bhima war memorial on the outskirts of the western Maharashtra city.

The Pune Police also alleged that some of the organizers of the conclave had links with Maoists. The case was later taken over by the NIA.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)