New Delhi, May 4: The Supreme Court on Thursday sought the response of the Maharashtra government and National Investigation Agency (NIA) on the bail pleas filed by Bhima Koregaon case accused Jyoti Jagtap and professor Shoma Sen. A bench of Justices Aniruddha Bose and Sudhanshu Dhulia issued notice to the Maharashtra government and NIA on the bail pleas.

The Bombay High Court had in January directed Professor Sen to approach the special NIA court for bail before coming to the High Court. Sen, an English literature professor, has been behind bars since 2018. She had applied for bail before the Pune Sessions Court in December 2018 prior to the filing of the chargesheet and another application after the chargesheet, however, both applications were rejected by the Sessions Court in November 2019. Bhima Koregaon Case: Supreme Court Dismisses NIA Plea Against Bail Granted to Activist Anand Teltumbde.

Jagtap (32), a member of the banned organisation Kabir Kala Manch (KKM) -- a cultural group alleged to be a front organisation of the banned CPI (Maoist), was arrested by the NIA in September 2020 under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA). Bhima Koregaon Case: Supreme Court To Hear Pleas of Activist Gautam Navlakha and NIA on November 18.

According to the NIA, Jagtap and others organised the Elgar Parishad on December 31, 2017, which led to violence the following day. Jagtap had approached the High Court after a special NIA Court had rejected her bail application on February 14, 2023, leading to a move to the apex court.

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