Bombay HC orders COVID+ve Bhima Koregaon accused Hany Babu's treatment in private hospital

In a crucial intervention, the Bombay HC directed that Bhima Koregaon accused Hany Babu, suffering from COVID and black fungus, be shifted to the Breach Candy Hospital by Thursday. A division bench of Justices S Kathawalla and S Tavade was hearing on Wednesday an urgent plea moved through his lawyers seeking bail on medical grounds. According to the family of the Delhi University Associate Professor, Babu was admitted to the JJ Hospital from Taloja jail on May 12, where he tested positive for COVID-19, 9 days after he started experiencing pain and swelling in the left eye.

While the accused expressed satisfaction with the treatment given at GT Hospital where he is currently recuperating, his counsel Yug Chaudhry told the court that the hospital did not have the necessary facilities. The bench observed that the patient deserves to be treated in a hospital of his choice in the current situation despite the NIA's opposition saying that it would become a precedent. Pointing out that Babu's family had agreed to foot the bill of the private hospital, it adjourned the matter to June 9.

The Bhima Koregaon-Elgar Parishad case

Violence had erupted at Koregaon-Bhima village in Pune district on January 1, 2018, where supporters had gathered to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Bhima Koregaon. This resulted in the death of one person and leaving several injured. Subsequently, the Pune police arrested activists such as Sudha Bharadwaj, Shoma Sen, Arun Ferreira, and Vernon Gonsalves, Surendra Gadling, Sudhir Dhawale and P Varavara Rao for allegedly inciting the Bhima Koregoan violence through their speech at the Elgar Parishad meeting on December 31, 2017. 

The charges filed by the police include 'conspiracy to assassinate PM Narendra Modi', 'overthrow the government', 'waging war against the Government of India' under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). Also, it has been alleged that some of the arrested individuals are active members of the banned CPI (Maoists) party. In January 2020, the case was transferred to the NIA.

On July 28, 2020, the central agency arrested Hany Babu in connection with this case after being questioned at length for 4 days. In September 2019, a team of Pune Police had raided his Delhi residence for more than 6 hours and confiscated his laptop, mobile phones, booklets and books. According to the NIA, the Delhi University Associate Professor was propagating Maoist activities and ideology and was a co-conspirator with the other accused.