Activist-poet Varavara Rao, arrested in Bhima Koregaon case, gets bail after 31 months

Activist-poet Varavara Rao, who was arrested in the Bhima Koregaon case, has been granted interim bail for six months by the Bombay High Court on Monday on medical grounds, reports news agency ANI. The High Court has imposed that Rao, 82, remains in Mumbai and he should be available for investigation.  

The Bombay HC also said that Rao should not make any public statements related to the legal proceedings and should not make any connections with the co-accused, a Live Law report says.

A division bench of Bombay High Court, comprising Justices SS Shinde and Manish Pitale said that after 6 months, Rao should either surrender or he can apply for an extension after the end of the bail period, a Money Control report says.

The high court had directed the state and NIA to shift Rao to Nanavati Hospital, taking note of the 80-year-old’s health after he tested positive for COVID-19 in July last year.

The 80-year-old was shifted to Nanavati Hospital again in December 2020 when his lawyers moved the court citing his deteriorating health. 

Arrested in 2018, Rao was charged under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) along with 16 other activists and academics. Rao’s case was transferred from Pune police to NIA in February last year.