NIA opposes Sudha Bhardwaj’s bail plea, says she is getting best treatment in jail

Sudha Bhardwaj has been lodged in jail since 2018 after her arrest in the Elgar Parishad case.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Tuesday told the Bombay high court that it opposed the interim bail plea of Sudha Bharadwaj, activist and accused in the Elgar Parishad case who is lodged in Byculla women’s prison since her arrest in 2018.

Sudha Bharadwaj (left) after she was arrested by the Pune police on August 28, 2018. (PTI FILE PHOTO)

Bharadwaj had approached the Bombay high court against the rejection of her interim bail plea by the special NIA court in May. Though she has been booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Amendment Act (UAPA), Bharadwaj sought interim bail on medical grounds in light of the directions issued by the Supreme Court to decongest jails due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Bhardawaj’s lawyer Ragini Ahuja told a a division bench of justice R D Dhanuka and justice V G Bisht that though the application in HC had been filed on June 11, it was not heard earlier. Ahuja further submitted that Bhardwaj suffered from some chronic ailments and due to her co-morbid condition and the fact that the Covid infection had spread in some jails, she was seeking temporary bail.

Additional solicitor general Anil Singh who appeared for the NIA opposed the application and submitted that Bharadwaj was being provided proper health facilities and her condition was being monitored regularly. In light of this and the fact that the UAPA did not have provision for bail she should not be granted it.

Singh further submitted that the jail authorities were complying with directions of the court that were issued in other applications and said that he wished to place the judgments on record, which the court accepted. Singh said that he would submit the compilation by Thursday after which the court posted the matter for hearing on July 31.