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Babu, arrested in July 2020 under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, had spent over five years in prison.

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The Bombay High Court on Thursday granted bail to former Delhi University professor and Bhima Koregaon accused Hany Babu, marking a significant development in the long-running case.

Babu, arrested in July 2020 under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, had spent over five years in prison. The order was issued by a division bench of Justices A.S. Gadkari and Ranjitsinha Raja Bhonsale, with the detailed judgment expected shortly.

Babu was among several activists and academics arrested in connection with violence that occurred near Pune on January 1, 2018, a day after the Elgar Parishad event commemorating the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Bhima Koregaon. The clashes left one person dead and several others injured.

The National Investigation Agency has alleged that the Elgar Parishad was part of a wider Maoist conspiracy aimed at inciting caste-based violence, destabilising the central government and plotting the assassination of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Investigators claim Babu was associated with the banned Communist Party of India (Maoist) and participated in the alleged conspiracy.

The case has been mired in controversy, particularly after a 2022 Wired magazine report alleged that Pune Police hacked the electronic devices of Babu and fellow accused Rona Wilson and Varavara Rao, allegedly planting incriminating documents.

Babu had withdrawn a bail plea before the Supreme Court in May 2024, indicating his intention to approach the High Court again, citing changed circumstances and the release of eight co-accused by various courts. During the latest hearings, Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh argued that Babu should not be granted bail solely because of prolonged incarceration.

Seven years after the violence, the trial has yet to commence. In the interim, several accused have secured bail, while Jesuit priest Stan Swamy died in custody in 2021. The High Court has previously granted bail to Wilson, Sudhir Dhawale and Sudha Bharadwaj, while the Supreme Court has released Rao, Shoma Sen, Vernon Gonsalves, Arun Ferreira and, most recently, Jyoti Jagtap.