SC asks Bombay High Court to consider Varavara Rao's bail plea

The Supreme Court on Thursday asked the Bombay High Court to expeditiously consider hearing the plea filed by the wife of Telugu poet and writer Varavara Rao arrested in connection with the Koregaon Bhima case seeking bail for himTaking note of the fact that the bail application has not been heard by the High Court since September 17 the top court said Raos medical condition demands attention of a particular character and timeA bench of Justices UU Lalit Vineet Saran and S Ravindra Bhat said the matter raises questions regarding the prisoners human rightsDuring the hearing senior advocate Indira Jaising appearing for Raos wife Pendyala Hemalatha said he has been suffering from various health problems which have affected his capacity to make decisions and mental comprehensionShe said besides other ailments Rao also has cardiovascular problems and suffered from COVID19 but was taken back to Taloja jail from Nanavati hospital in Mumbai against medical opinionThe bench told Jaising the medical report filed in the matter was of the month of July and asked when the bail application was last heard by the Bombay High CourtJaising replied that there were hearings on the bail plea in August and then on September 17 but it was not taken up after that as one of the judges on the bench recused from further hearing the matterShe said despite repeated requests to the court no hearing has taken place on the bail plea despite medical reports clearly saying Rao is suffering from ailments which compromise his mental ability to comprehendThe bench asked Jaising if these facts have been brought before the High Court to which she said a letter was sent to the registrarThe bench said it would request the High Court to expeditiously take up the bail applicationJaising said her petition before the top court was under Article 32 of the Constitution right to move the Supreme Court for enforcement of rights and she was complaining about the conditions of detentionThe bench said once the competent court has taken cognizance its under the authority of the competent court to deal with the issueJaising said Rao was sent back to jail from the hospital against medical opinion and it was a violation of the right to healthThe bench said as the cognizance has been taken the top court cannot say that the detention of the man was illegal and the issue of bail was already before the high court which could be on merits or on medical groundsIt said as far as medical ground are concerned the high court is seized of it as Nanavati hospital report is also before it but what is bothering the top court is that the matter is not being heard after a judge recused from the benchJaising said so much time has elapsed and the mans condition has already deteriorated and there is reasonable apprehension that he may die in jailThe bench told Jaising its concern is why the matter is not getting listed in the high court even after more than a monthIt asked Solicitor General Tushar Mehta why Rao was shifted out of Nanavati hospital to Taloga jailWe dont like the idea of a fatality in jail the bench said and noted that the chargesheet in the case was filed before Special Judge Pune in 2019 which had taken cognizance of the offence against the arrested personIt further noted that Raos bail applicationwas first taken up for hearing before two different benches and was last heard on September 17Earlier this month Hemalatha had moved the top court and urged that during the pendency of the petition the 81yearold accused be released on temporary medical bail and be allowed to travel to Hyderabad to be with his family and loved onesIt sought immediate release of Rao on the ground that his continued custody amounts to cruel and inhuman treatment violating Article 21 of the Constitution life or personal liberty and violative of his dignity in custodyThe plea said The health condition of the Petitioners husband is very feeble and he suffers from various comorbiditiesWhen the Petitioners husband was arrested on August 28 2018 he had no neurological problems It is therefore highly likely that COVID19 and the fall that he had in St George Hospital has led to neurological problems as reflected in the medical report filed by Nanavati Hospital dated July 30The petition filed by advocate Sunil Fernandes said considering the comorbidity factors of age persistent hyponatremia in COVID19 case the patient will require close monitoringAn FIR was lodged against several activists including Varavara Rao Gautam Navlakha and others by the Pune Police in January 2018 after the Elgar Parishad event was held on December 31 2017 that had allegedly triggered violence at Koregaon Bhima in Pune district the next dayThe police have also alleged that the accused in the case had Maoist links and were working towards overthrowing the governmentSeveral accused including Navlakha were charged under provisions of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act UAPA and the Indian Penal CodeBesides Rao and Navalakha three others Arun Ferreira Vernon Gonsalves and Sudha Bharadwaj are accused in the caseKeep scrolling to read more newsCatch up on all the latest Crime National International and Hatke news here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates MidDay is now on Telegram Click here to join our channel middayinfomedialtd and stay updated with the latest newsThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever