Guwahati, July 16: The Guwahati High Court on Thursday granted bail to RTI activist Akhil Gogoi in three cases related to violence that erupted during protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act in 2019. The development comes amid reports that Akhil Gogoi is unwell and has contracted coronavirus (COVID-19) at the Guwahati Central Jail where he has been lodged for the past seven months. Akhil Gogoi is Sick, Has Developed COVID-19 Symptoms, Says Wife Geetashree Tamuly in Facebook Post.

Gogoi was arrested in December 2019 when Assam was witnessing widespread protests against the controversial Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). Last week, Gogoi's legal counsel Santanu Barthakur told the media, "I received the news that Gogoi has tested positive for COVID-19." The Assam government, however, had refuted the media reports that Gogoi tested COVID-19 positive.

Earlier this month, Gogoi's wife Geetashree Tamuly, in a Facebook post, had said that her husband's health deteriorated inside the prison. "It’s been a few months. There is no TV in the house. A lot of things stay without knowing. Just saw this on Facebook…Akhil is sick, symptoms of COVID. Don’t know what to say," Tamuly, who teaches Assamese at the B. Borooah College in Guwahati, had written.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 16, 2020 07:00 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).