Bombay High Court Acquits Former-DU Professor GN Saibaba, Others in Maoist Links Case

Mumbai: Former-professor of the Delhi University GN Saibaba, who was arrested for suspected Maoist links, has been acquitted by the Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court. The court has set aside the life imprisonment sentence to him in the case. Along with GN Saibaba, the HC has also acquitted five other accused, ruling that the prosecution failed to prove the case beyond reasonable doubt against them. 

A division bench of Justice Vinay G Joshi and Justice Valimiki SA Menezes had concluded the hearing and reserved its verdict in September last year, following directions from the Supreme Court.

Court held the case as “null and void”

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).

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.

The acquitted appellants have been asked to deposit Rs 50000 each with surety bonds. 

Earlier, the appeals were filed by Saibaba, Mahesh Tirki, Hem Mishra and Prashant Rahi, who were sentenced to life imprisonment and Vijay, who was sentenced to 10 years in jail by a special court in 2017. 

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.

Saibaba (54), who is wheelchair-bound due to physical disability, has been 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.