The Bombay High Court on Monday adjourned till September 24 the hearing on the plea for interim bail extension of poet-activist Varavara Rao, an accused in the Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case, and said he need not surrender to Taloja prison authorities till September 25.
The surrendered Naxal said such arguments and counter-arguments led to internal dispute. "I felt suffocated and a sense of remorse started setting in."
The case pertains to the Elgar Parishad conclave held in Pune on December 31, 2017, which according to the Pune police was funded by Maoists.
A woman self-styled Maoist commander on Friday surrendered before the police in West Midnapore district alleging sexual exploitation by ultra leaders.
An immediate grant of Rs 1.5 lakh, monthly stipends during training and even monetary incentives for surrender of weapons are all there for the asking for the banned Naxals under a surrender-cum-rehabilitation policy approved by the Centre on Monday.
The Raman Singh government hardens its stand against left-wing extremists a few days after home minister Ramsewak Paikra said the Chhattisgarh government was open for a dialogue with Naxals
A day after a fierce gun-battle at Lakhanpur jungle in Jungle Mahal between Maoists and joint forces, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday appealed to them to give up violence and offered a fresh package. Promising security to Maoists who will surrender, Banerjee said, "We want Maoists to give up the politics of guns and violence and join the mainstream. Return to a normal life with your families."
The larger conspiracy of Communist Party of India-Maoists was to overthrow the democratic system in the country, and the accused were working in that direction, the chargesheet claimed.
Rejecting an offer made by Odisha police, top Maoist leader Sabyasachi Panda on Saturday said he has no plan to surrender as being speculated.
Activists Vernon Gonsalves and Arun Ferreira, accused in the Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case, are likely to walk out of jail only next week after securing bail from the Supreme Court on Friday as certain formalities are to be completed before they are released, defence lawyers said in Mumbai.
There is a "high probability" of political leaders coming under a Chhatisgarh-type attack during their panchayat poll campaign in Maoist-hit Jangalmahal in West Bengal, intelligence sources here have indicated.
A bench of Justices Aniruddha Bose and Sudhanshu Dhulia said the actual involvement of Gonsalves and Ferreira in any terrorist act has not surfaced from any third-party communications.
The 72-day ceasefire call given by the Maoists has received mixed response from the common public in West Bengal and Jharkhand.
The apex court on July 28 granted bail to the two accused, noting that the actual involvement of Gonsalves and Ferreira in any terrorist act has not surfaced from any third-party communications.
Warning Maoists who have rejected her ultimatum to surrender, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday hoped that 'good sense' would still prevail and warned the Left-wing ultras that her patience was wearing thin. Banerjee, who is on her third visit to Jungle Mahal, said, "I have given lot of time and if good sense prevails, I have no objections. I will give you food, jobs, houses and roads and consider your cases."
The release of activists Vernon Gonsalves and Arun Ferreira, accused in the Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case, could get delayed as a special NIA court in Mumbai on Monday rejected their pleas for temporary cash bail.
There is ample material against activist Gautam Navlakha in the charge sheet filed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in the Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case and prima facie he is connected with the alleged offence, a special court in Mumbai has said while denying him bail.
It is in circumstances like this that the Constitution becomes extremely important. It reminds us that we have a commitment towards higher human values to fulfil, a path to get back to, suggests Shyam G Menon.Else, we risk being rudderless in an ocean of money and majoritarianism, suggests Shyam G Menon.
Two days after Naxals struck in a big way in Chhattisgarh, the government on Wednesday asserted that there will be no let up in operations to eliminate the Maoist menace and promised all support to the security forces to deal with it firmly.
Thirteen Central Reserve Police Force personnel, including two officers were killed in a Maoist attack in the Chintagufa area in Chhattisgarh's Sukhma while they were on an area domination exercise. According to reports, the attackers used locals as human shields to prevent CRPF retaliation.
Indian intelligence agencies have often claimed that left-wing extremists are trying to make inroads in the militancy-hit regions of north-east to foment further unrest. But Jaideep Saikia, noted terrorism and conflict analyst, claims, "People who speak of Maoism taking roots in the north-east have not read history".
Teltumbde, the grandson-in-law of Dalit icon Dr B R Ambedkar, was produced before a special NIA court judge A T Wankehede after his remand ended on Saturday.
When the fierce encounter ended around 3:30 PM on Saturday after almost 10 hours, senior cadre Milind Teltumbade and 25 ultras had been killed.
The Supreme Court on Friday rejected the NIA's application and ordered social activist Gautam Navlakha to be put under house arrest within 24-hours after shifting him from Taloja jail in Navi Mumbai.
Teltumbde, Navlakha and nine other civil liberties activists have been booked under the stringent provisions of Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) for having alleged Maoist links and conspiring to overthrow the government.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday said it was considering allowing the house arrest request of activist Gautam Navlakha incarcerated in connection with the Elgar Parishad-Maoist link case.
The court also asked her not to indulge in any activity 'similar to the activities on the basis' of which a first information report (FIR) has been registered against her for offences under the Indian Penal Code and the UAPA (Unlawful Activities Prevention Act).
The driver of a Scorpio that was right behind the vehicle targeted by Naxalites with an improvised explosive device (IED) in Chhattisgarh's Dantewada district on Wednesday said he won't be able to forget the day long as he lives.
The National Investigation Agency on Friday told the Bombay high court that the health condition of poet Varavara Rao, an accused in the Elgar Parishad-Maoists links case who is currently on an interim medical bail granted in February this year, was stable and hence must surrender before the prison authorities.
A bench of Justices S B Shukre and G A Sanap, however, extended the time for the 83-year-old activist to surrender before the Taloja prison authorities by three months, to enable him to undergo a cataract surgery.
Anand Teltumbde, an accused in the Elgar Parishad Maoist links case, has filed a writ petition in Bombay High Court seeking that a provision under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) to brand certain groups as a front for banned or terrorist organisations be quashed as it was bad in law.
A former Maoist speaks to Shobha Warrier
The HC had last month directed that he be released immediately on bail after being discharged from hospital.
He said 162 terrorists and Maoists were killed across the country in 2021-22.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday said it will hear Bhima Koregaon case accused P Varavara Rao's plea for permanent medical bail on July 19 and extended his interim protection till further orders.
The Bombay high court on Friday granted two weeks' time to the National Investigation Agency to file its reply on the petitions of activists Sudha Bharadwaj and Gautam Navlakha, both accused in the Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case, seeking clone copies of all the electronic devices seized from them by the central agency.