Varavara Rao must go back to prison as other old people also in jail: NIA to HC

The National Investigation Agency NIA on Monday urged the Bombay High Court to direct poetactivist Varavara Rao an accused in the Elgar ParishadMaoist links case to surrender before the Taloja prison authorities saying that several other old people in need of medical treatment were also in prisonsThe NIA made the submission as a bench of Justices Nitin Jamdar and S V Kotwal extended the time for 83yearold Rao to surrender till January 7 2022Rao was granted temporary medical bail for six months by the HC in February this year and was supposed to surrender on September 5 but he applied for the extension of such bail stating that he continued to suffer from several ailmentsThe HC has extended his bail multiple times due to reasons like the need for further medical care and time sought by the NIA to get him medically examinedOn Monday as Raos counsel Anand Grover sought time to file an affidavit responding to his medical examination reports submitted by the Nanavati Hospital here the NIA opposed any further extension of time for surrenderAlso read Varavara Rao medically stable as per hospital report he must surrender NIA to Bombay HCAdditional Solicitor General Anil Singh who appeared for the NIA told the HC that on December 17 a panel of expert doctors from the Nanavati Hospital a private medical facility submitted a onepage document stating that Rao had been examined thoroughly his vital parameters were stable and he did not need continued medical treatment or hospitalisationWe are not experts to examine or analyse Nanavati Hospitals opinion Once it says that he Rao is fit for discharge then there is no question of any further extension Singh told the HCIn jail there are other old people who need medical treatment They are treated when needed Let him Rao surrender His age cant be a ground for extension Singh saidHowever Grover told the bench that though the NIA had submitted Nanavati Hospitals opinion on Raos medical condition and his medical reports he must be permitted to file an affidavit to inform the court whether or not Rao was in a position to be sent back to the prisonHe said in February this year the bench of Justices S S Shinde and Manish Pitale had granted medical bail to Rao despite a similar opinion from the Nanavati HospitalOn my original application Nanavati Hospital had given a similar conclusion The hospital had said at the time that I Rao didnt need indoor hospital treatment and could be discharged from the hospital Grover saidBut the HC bench of Justices Shinde and Pitale had granted bail observing that Raos condition was not compatible for being sent to judicial custody he saidThe current bench of Justices Jamdar and Kotwal then asked what the NIA had to say about the previous benchs observationsWhile ASG Singh reiterated that Rao be asked to surrender and the court could continue to decide his application for further medical bail even while the activist is in custody the bench found merit in Grovers submissionsThe HC noted that the NIA says it is not necessary to analyse the hospitals preliminary report any further and that it should be accepted as expert opinionHowever the earlier bench of Justices Shinde and Pitale had considered the larger situation and analysed the reports despite Nanavati Hospital saying Raos condition had improved and he was fit for discharge The counsels Grovers request for this bench following the same course taken by the previous bench is justified the high court said in its orderThe HC directed Grover to file an affidavit by December 28 and posted the matter for further hearing on January 4 2022But Singh argued that if the process of granting extensions to Rao continued he will never have to surrenderIn effect hes being given bail Singh told the HCThe high court however said it was merely going by the earlier benchs orderThe Elgar Parishad case is related to inflammatory speeches made at a conclave held in Pune on December 31 2017 which the police claimed triggered violence the next day near the KoregaonBhima war memorial located on the outskirts of the western Maharashtra cityThe police had claimed the conclave was organised by people with alleged Maoist linksThe NIA later took over the probe into the caseThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever