Varavara Rao's Plea For Extension Of Medical Bail; Bombay HC Adjourns The Matter Due To Paucity Of Time, Grants Interim Protection

Rao has sought an extension of the medical bail granted to him on February 22, 2021, for six months, and modification of a bail condition to reside at his home in Telangana.

On Friday, after Rao's counsel informed the court that the octogenarian is protected only until tomorrow, Justices SS Shinde and NJ Jamadar said that interim protection granted earlier would continue till the matter is heard after two weeks.

The court then adjourned the matter to October 13 and extended protection to Rao till October 14.

Rao has said he is still ailing and hasn't flouted a single bail condition; therefore, he was deserving of the reliefs sought. Moreover, residing with his 72-year-old wife in Mumbai, away from home, is difficult and unaffordable, he has said.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) opposed Rao's plea in a reply filed last week. The agency claims that Rao's medical reports don't disclose a "major ailment" which necessitates the extension of bail or requires him to reside at his home in Hyderabad.

Along with his pre-existing neurological issues, Rao's plea stated that he suffers from lacunar infarcts (dead brain tissue) due to arterial blockages in the brain that deals with intelligence, memory, and visual processing area brain. He's also been recommended immediate cataract surgery in both his eyes.

The Case

The NIA has accused Rao and 14 other activists of furthering the banned CPI(Maoist)'s agenda and conspiring to overthrow the government. They are booked under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) based on letters/emails primarily retrieved from their electronic devices.

As part of a criminal conspiracy, NIA alleged that the Elgar Parishad Cultural Event was organized in Pune on December 31, 2017. The inflammatory speeches at the event contributed to the caste violence at Bhima Koregaon the following day, the agency alleged.

The accused have claimed that while most of them hadn't participated in the event or weren't named in the FIR, the electronic evidence is planted.

Case Title: [Varavara Rao vs NIA]