The Bombay High Court on Wednesday permitted human rights activist Gautam Navlakha, an accused in the Elgar Parishad Maoist links case, to relocate to his permanent residence in Delhi during the pendency of the criminal proceedings, while relaxing a key condition of bail that had restricted his movement to Mumbai.
The Division Bench of Justice Bharati Dangre and Justice Shyam Chandak allowed Navlakha’s application seeking modification of the bail conditions imposed earlier. It further took note of the submission that the existing condition prohibiting Navlakha from leaving Mumbai without prior permission of the Special Court had caused undue hardship.
The human rights activist had approached the High Court contending that he was financially incapable of continuing to reside in Mumbai and that his prolonged separation from his family and social support system in Delhi had become onerous.
The Counsel appearing for the 73-year-old submitted that he had been living away from his permanent home for nearly two years and that continued residence in Mumbai was neither sustainable nor necessary for the purposes of trial.
The National Investigation Agency opposed the plea on the ground that granting such relief could potentially open the floodgates for similarly placed accused persons, many of whom were not residents of Mumbai, to seek identical modifications of their bail conditions. It was argued that such relaxation could dilute the uniformity of conditions imposed in cases arising out of serious offences under special statutes.
The High Court ordered Navlakha to deposit his passport with the authorities, report every Saturday at the Kalkaji Police station, and not leave Delhi without prior permission of the trial court. He was further to remain present before the Special Court in Mumbai as and when required, including at the stage of framing of charges.
The Division Bench held that the modification would not prejudice the conduct of the trial. The power to vary bail conditions was well recognised under criminal jurisprudence, particularly where such conditions were found to be excessive or disproportionate to the object sought to be achieved. The purpose of bail was to secure the presence of the accused during trial and not to impose conditions that effectively operated as punitive restrictions, it added.
The High Court further acknowledged the personal circumstances highlighted by the accused and observed that prolonged dislocation from one’s family, social environment, and place of permanent residence could constitute a relevant factor in assessing the reasonableness of bail conditions. It was noted that adequate safeguards could be imposed to ensure continued cooperation with the trial without necessitating compulsory residence in Mumbai.
While warning that any violation would entail appropriate legal consequences, the Division Bench said the matter would remain under the supervision of the Special Court seized of the Bhima Koregaon case.
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