The Supreme Court on Friday granted bail to activists Vernon Gonsalves and Arun Ferreira, who were arrested in August 2018 for their alleged involvement in the Elgar Parishad Maoists links case.
The Bench of Justice Aniruddha Bose and Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia approved bail applications of the accused on the grounds that they have remained under custody for over five years and that the material against them could not justify their continued detention pending the trial.
The Apex Court further noted that though the allegations against them were of serious nature, it could not be the sole ground to deny bail to the accused.
Setting aside the Bombay High Court’s order denying them bail, the Supreme Court Court directed that they shall be released on bail on condition that they shall not leave the State of Maharashtra till the trial is over. They have to surrender their passports and inform the NIA their addresses and mobile phone numbers. They can have only one mobile connection during the period. Their mobile phones should be charged round the clock and the location must be kept on and shared with the NIA officer for live-tracking. They shall also report to the investigating officer once a week.
The post appeared first on .