The Supreme Court will on Friday hear activist Gautam Navlakha’s plea accusing the National Investigation Agency (NIA) of defying the November 10 apex court order that he be shifted to house arrest from Mumbai’s Taloja jail within 48 hours.
The central agency has challenged the Elgaar Parishad-Maoist links case accused’s contention by stating that he had given the CPI’s office-cum-library address for his detention, which was unacceptable.
A bench headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud listed the separate applications moved by Navlakha and the NIA for consideration on Friday by a bench headed by Justice K.M. Joseph, which had passed the original November 10 order.
During the morning mentioning time on Thursday, senior advocate Nitya Ramakrishnan sought urgent listing of the application moved by the civil liberties activist challenging the refusal of the NIA to shift him to “house arrest” by raising objections to the address given by him.
“There is some urgency in the matter. The order of house arrest came on November 10 to be complied with within 48 hours. They were to inspect the premises, which they did not. Because of their objections, the order cannot be implemented,” Ramakrishnan said.
Solicitor-general Tushar Mehta, appearing for the NIA, countered the allegation, saying: “He (Navlakha) is a person accused of being engaged in activities of Maoists. We had several objections to his house arrest request. But now, instead of giving a house address, he has given the address of a library-cum-office stay place of the Communist Party of India.”
Mehta added that the probe agency was also seeking certain other directions in the fresh application being moved in the matter.
However, Ramakrishnan submitted that Navlakha, even at the time of seeking house arrest, had mentioned the same address in his application and so there should not be any objection.
Mehta said the NIA had also moved an application, which needed to be considered together with the activist’s plea. Initially, Mehta had suggested that the matter be taken up for hearing on Monday.
However, when the bench proceeded to list Navlakha’s application for hearing on Friday, the SG urged the court to club the NIA application with it and hear both together on Friday.
He reasoned that the NIA plea would become infructuous if both matters were not heard together.
The bench, which also included Justices Hima Kohli and J.B. Pardiwala, then listed the applications moved by Navlakha and the NIA for consideration on Friday by the bench of Justices K.M. Joseph and Hrishikesh Roy.
In the November 10 order, the court had directed the NIA to shift the civil liberties activist to “house arrest” within 48 hours from Taloja Central Jail, but had imposed a string of conditions to ensure he does not misuse his liberty.
The bench, while granting the NIA all powers to conduct constant surveillance on Navlakha, had cautioned that the agency cannot use this as a “ruse to harass the petitioner”.