Bhima-Koregaon: Bombay HC allows activist and lawyer Sudha Bharadwaj to attend her father’s final rituals

The Bombay High Court on Thursday allowed civil rights activist and lawyer Sudha Bharadwaj to visit her home to attend her late father’s 13th day rituals and other final rights in Bangalore for two days..A Single Bench of Justice Sarang Kotwal permitted the visit, including two days of travelling time and two days of stay at her Bangalore home..The Pune Police will take her to Bangalore on August 17. She will visit home and attend the rituals on August 18 and 19. The Police would then escort her back to prison, starting from Bangalore on August 20..Sudha Bharadwaj has been in custody at the Yerawada prison in Pune for a year, following her arrest in the Bhima-Koregaon case..Appearing for Bharadwaj, Advocate Yug Mohit Chaudhary informed the Court that her father, Professor Ranganath Bharadwaj had died on August 6. Therefore, a plea for temporary bail so that Bharadwaj may attend the rituals. He argued that Bharadwaj, who could not attend her father’s funeral, should be given few days to spend time with her daughter and attend the 13th day rituals..The Court has granted the temporary bail and directed the Pune Police to escort her to Bangalore in plain clothes. The State government is to bear the travelling costs..Appearing for the Pune Police, Additional Public Prosecutor Aruna Pai agreed to escort Bharadwaj to Bangalore on humanitarian grounds..The Court will hear the bail applications filed by Sudha Bharadwaj and the other accused, Arun Ferreira and Vernon Gonsalves on a regular basis from August 27..Sudha Bharadwaj and four other activists were implicated after an Elgar Parishad meeting held on December 31, 2017, that allegedly provoked violence at the Koregaon-Bhima village in Pune the next day..On July 26, the Bombay High Court reserved its order on a plea filed by civil rights activist Gautam Navlakha to quash the FIR filed against him by the Pune Police..Bar & Bench is available on WhatsApp. For real-time updates on stories, Click here to subscribe to our WhatsApp.