Bombay HC acquits ex-DU professor GN Saibaba, 5 others in Maoist links case

The Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court on Tuesday (March 5) acquitted former Delhi University professor GN Saibaba in an alleged Maoist links case and set aside the life imprisonment handed to him.

A division bench of Justices Vinay Joshi and Valmiki SA Menezes also acquitted five other accused in the case.

The bench said it was acquitting all the accused as the prosecution failed to prove the case beyond reasonable doubt against them.

It also held as “null and void” the sanction procured by the prosecution to charge the accused under provisions of the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

Prosecution may move SC

While the prosecution did not seek the HC to stay its order, it said it was likely to file an appeal in the Supreme Court immediately.

On October 14, 2022, another bench of the HC acquitted Saibaba, noting the trial proceedings were “null and void” in the absence of a valid sanction under the UAPA.

The Maharashtra government had on the same day approached the Supreme Court challenging the decision.

The apex court initially stayed the order and later in April 2023, set aside the HC order and directed it to hear the appeal filed by Saibaba afresh.

Lodged in Nagpur jail

Saibaba (54), who is wheelchair-bound due to physical disability, is lodged in the Nagpur Central Jail since his arrest in the case in 2014.

In 2017, a sessions court in Maharashtra's Gadchiroli district convicted Saibaba and five others, including a journalist and a Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student, for alleged Maoist links and for indulging in activities amounting to waging war against the country.

The trial court had held them guilty under various provisions of the UAPA and the Indian Penal Code.

Bail bonds

The court ordered their release on deposit of Rs 50,000 each as bail bonds until the Supreme Court decides an appeal by the State, which did not seek a stay on the judgment.

One of the accused, Pandu Pora Narote, died in August 2022. Mahesh Tirki, Hem Keshwdatta Mishra, Prashant Rahi and Vijay Nan Tirki are the other accused.

Sessions court

The sessions court was found to have framed charges against Saibaba without a sanction from the Central government in violation of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

The high court had noted that a democracy cannot sacrifice procedural safeguards afforded to the accused.

The Maharashtra government then rushed to the Supreme Court, which held a special sitting on October 15, 2022 and suspended the high court decision.

(With agency inputs)