Bhima Koregaon Case: Special NIA Court Rejects Default Bail Plea of 5 Accused

The Bhima Koregaon accused filed the default bail applications in 2018.

Bhima Koregaon: (L-R) Dr Shoma Sen, Rona Wilson, Surendra Gadling, Mahesh Raut, and Sudhir Dhawale. 

(Photos Courtesy: Facebook)

Bail applications of five Bhima Koregaon accused – Rona Wilson, Shoma Sen, Sudhir Dhawale, Mahesh Raut, and Surendra Gadling – were rejected by a special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court on Tuesday, 28 June 2022.

The accused filed default bail applications in 2018 at a Pune sessions court stating that the extension of 90 days granted to the investigating agency for filing the charge sheet was "illegal." The case was then probed by the police. However, it was later transferred to the NIA.

The bail application was rejected by special judge Rajesh Katariya.

The above-mentioned Bhima Koregaon accused were arrested in June 2018 by Pune's Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS). In their bail application, the accused challenged the extension sought by the police on the grounds that it was not in compliance with the procedure under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, reported Bar and Bench.

The trial court granted the extension to the police in September 2018, the report added.

The decision of extension for the filing of the charge sheet was later stayed by the Bombay High Court. But subsequently, in October 2018, the Supreme Court stayed the high court's order in the view of the appeal filed by the Maharashtra government.

What Is the Bhima Koregaon Case?

The Bhima-Koregaon case pertains to the alleged inflammatory speeches made at the 'Elgar Parishad' conclave, which was held at Shaniwarwada in Pune, on 31 December 2017.

According to the Pune Police, the speeches delivered at the conclave had triggered violence near the Koregaon-Bhima war memorial located on the city's outskirts, on the day after the conclave, i.e., 1 January 2018. The police also claimed that the conclave had been backed by Maoists.

Till now, a total of 16 accused have been arrested in the case. One of the accused – Father Stan Swamy – died of cardiac arrest last year, a day before his bail hearing.

In a recent development, a report by WIRED magazine revealed the findings of a cyber security firm called SentinelOne, which established a link between the malware used to target several of the Bhima Koregaon accused and plant 'incriminating material' on their computers, and an officer of the Pune Police who was involved in the investigation.

(With inputs from PTI and Bar and Bench.)