Bail for activists Rona Wilson, Sudhir Dhawale in Bhima Koregaon case

Activists Rona Wilson and Sudhir Dhawale were on Wednesday granted bail by the Bombay High Court in the Bhima Koregaon case, Live Law reported.

“They are in jail since 2018, even the charges in the case are yet to be framed,” the court noted. “The prosecution has cited over 300 witnesses and thus there is no possibility of the trial to conclude in the near future.”

The bail conditions include a surety of Rs 1 lakh and restrictions on traveling outside Mumbai without court permission.

The activists have been warned against tampering with evidence and must surrender their passports. They are required to report to the National Investigation Agency’s headquarters in Mumbai every week.

Dhawale is the founder of the Dalit rights organisation Republican Panthers. He is also a well-known poet, political commentator and publisher of the left-leaning Marathi magazine Vidrohi.

Wilson is an activist from Kerala and one of the founding members of the Committee for the Release of Political Prisoners.

They were among 16 academicians, activists and lawyers who were charged under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act for their alleged role in instigating caste violence at Bhima Koregaon near Pune in January 2018. They were also accused of having links with the banned Communist Party of India (Maoist).

Of the 16 persons who have been arrested in the case,...

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