[Bhima Koregaon case] Bombay High Court rejects plea by Varavara Rao for permanent bail; extends temporary bail for 3 months

The Bombay High Court on Wednesday rejected the plea for permanent bail filed by Telugu poet Varavara Rao who is an accused in the 2018 Bhima Koregaon violence..A bench of SB Shukre and GA Sanap also rejected the application by Rao to stay in Telangana during the duration of bail."The present petition seeking permanent bail is dismissed. Plea seeking modification of bail to go to Telangana is dismissed," the Court said.The Court, however, extended for three more months an earlier order granting him temporary bail.."On going through the record, we have not come across an iota of material to conclude that all the expert Medical Officers have examined the accused have acted under the influence of NIA. ...Seriousness and severity of the crime would remain till such time the accused is pronounced not guilty of the crime alleged to have been committed. Role attributed to the accused is serious. He is one of the main conspirators. Therefore, in our opinion, on the medical ground the accused is not entitled to get bail," the order stated. .Rao had been granted temporary medical bail by an earlier Division Bench in February 2021 for a period of six months.When the six month was about to expire, Rao filed for extension of medical bail in February 2021 and modification of the conditions of bail.However, in line with objection by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), the High Court also instructed Rao to file a petition with fresh grounds.In this backdrop, Rao filed three separate pleas through Advocate R Satyanarayanan:An application seeking extension of the interim bail granted in February 2021;A writ petition seeking permanent bail on medical grounds; andAn application seeking permission to stay in Hyderabad during the duration of bail on the grounds that staying in Mumbai is expensive..Senior Advocate Anand Grover along with advocate Aditya Chitale had made the following submissions on behalf of Rao:That living in Mumbai with multiple medical ailments was turning out to be expensive and by staying in Hyderabad, he may end up saving money, considering the fact that the cost of living and medical expenses are lower in Telangana;That security which NIA seeks can be managed from Telangana as well as NIA is a national agency having jurisdiction across the country. Therefore, Rao could report to the NIA office located in Telangana.That Rao had been acquitted in all offences charged against him earlier, but in the present case, he could not be kept in prison despite his poor health in order to avoid further deterioration like the previous time..Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh on behalf of NIA had opposed all the applications:That the period of six months of interim bail had expired after which Rao filed for extension of medical bail; however even the subsequent period of 6 months have already lapsed;That doctors at Nanavati hospital had examined Rao and given their opinion in the report submitted to the Court;That if Rao requires medical attention, then the prison authorities are equipped to look after him, and if required, transfer to JJ hospital, which has excellent doctors giving priority to a humanitarian approach;That Rao is an accused of serious offences under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) which was also considered by the earlier bench while rejecting the permanent bail application..[Read Order]