New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday granted bail to civil rights activist Binayak sen, who has been lodged in a Raipur jail for over two years under unproven charges of links with Maoists in Chhattisgarh.
The bail was granted by a vacation bench of Justice Markandey Katju and Justice Deepak Verma.
Former law minister Shanti Bhushan, appearing for Sen, had earlier pleaded to the court to accord an urgent hearing to Sen's bail plea in view of his precarious health condition.
A bench of Justice D K Jain and Justice B S Reddy had on May 4 issued notice to the Chhattisgarh government on Sen's bail plea.
While seeking its reply, the bench had also ordered the state government to provide him the "best possible medical aid" for the heart ailment he has been suffering from.
The Chhattisgarh government has booked Sen, the vice-president of People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) under the stringent anti-terror law, Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, for his alleged links with Maoists.
He was arrested on May 14, 2007 and accused of acting as a courier for an alleged Maoist lodged in jail.
On May 4, former law minister Ram Jethmalani, appearing for Sen, had sought bail for him pleading that "the case against him has already been demolished in the trial court as all the material witnesses in the case have been examined" and none of them have deposed against him.
Jethmalani had contended that despite the case against Sen having been demolished, the Chhattisgarh High Court was not entertaining his bail plea.
Binayak Sen has won the prestigious Jonathan Mann award in the year 2008 for his work in health and human rights. He has been working in Chhattisgarh for more than a decade, making health accessible to the poorest.
He has been suffering from a heart ailment and has also sought permission to be treated at his alma mater, the Christian Medical College, Vellore. His supporters have campaigned relentlessly for over two years and range from Nobel laureates to civil rights activists to filmmakers and writers.Family Rejoices Binayak Sen's Freedom
Rights activist Binayak Sen's family rejoiced over a Supreme Court order Monday granting him bail after two years in jail for alleged Maoist links. His wife Ilina said the court order was "delayed" but ended her "personal ordeal".
"I am very happy that my personal ordeal is over. The judiciary has stood up for what is correct. He was held on trumped up charges," Ilina said.
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Binayak, an award-winning paediatrician and vice president of People's Union for Civil Liberties, was held at Bilaspur town in Chhattisgarh May 14, 2007 under the stringent Chhattisgarh Special Public Security Act for his alleged links with Maoist guerrillas, a charge he, his family and activists vehemently deny.
He is presently lodged in Raipur Central Jail.
Ilina and daughter Pranhita flew in to Raipur from Mumbai as soon as the news of the court order came.
"Justice has prevailed. This is the victory of the legal system," Ilina said.
When asked if her husband would continue working for public health in tribal areas of Chhattisgarh, she said: "I know that the health services that he was providing have suffered in the last two years. But at the moment I am waiting for him to be released and want him to recover from his health problems."
Binayak's brother Dipanker said: "Finally justice has been done. He has been in jail for two years without a shred of evidence against him."
Dipankar, a trader in the commodities market in Antwerp, Belgium, is currently in New Delhi and has been fighting for his brother's freedom. He also thanked the people who continued to fight for Binayak, who is a doctor by profession.
"I am overwhelmed at the decision of the Supreme Court and we thank people of the country, especially journalists, who have supported us in our fight," he said.
Binayak's younger daughter Aparajita, who is in Delhi, said she cannot wait for the "scattered family" of four to be united.
"I am just too happy - I am speechless. This is our victory and a great time for family and friends," Aparajita said.
A class 12 student in Mumbai, she was in the capital Monday for a National School of Drama workshop.
"The first thing I will do when he is out - will be to sit with him and spend as much time as possible as I can... as much as I want," an excited Aparajita said.
Recalling the family's struggle in the past two years, she said: "It was unfair! My mother, sister and I have spent the last two years in struggle and hoping... it was painful living without my father and knowing he was in jail," she sighed.
"The four of us were scattered - my sister and I in Mumbai, my mother in Nagpur and my father there in Raipur. I am so happy now. We were anxiously waiting for this - my mother was running around - shuttling between cities, trying to balance her work and the case."
"The family will finally be united," she said.
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The following is a timeline of events since the May 2007 arrest of civil rights activist Binayak Sen on unproven charges of links with Maoists in Chhattisgarh.May 14, 2007: Binayak Sen arrested in Chhattisgarh's Bilaspur town on charges of acting as a courier between jailed Maoist leader Narayan Sanyal and businessman Piyush Guha, also accused of having links with Maoists.May 15, 2007: Sen remanded to judicial custody by a local court. Bail denied.May 18, 2007: Sen produced in sessions court. Court orders a search of Sen's house at Katora Talab in Raipur in presence of independent witnesses and his wife, Ilina Sen. The search was conducted the next day.May 22, 2007: Sen produced in sessions court along with Piyush Guha. Judicial remand extended to June 5. Court orders search of Sen's personal computer.May 25, 2007: Sen denied bail again as Chhattisgarh police claim he was a threat to state security.May 26-June 4, 2007: Series of rallies and meetings in support of Sen held across India and abroad, including Raipur, Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai London, Boston and New York. Various delegations of physicians and human rights activists meet chief secretary and law secretary to appeal for Sen's release.June 5, 2007: Sen produced in court, rebuts allegations by police.June 6-June 11, 2007: Sen's computer analysed by Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL), Hyderabad in the absence of defence lawyers.July 23, 2007: Chhattisgarh High Court rejects Sen's bail plea after police claim incriminating evidence found in hard disc belonging to him.August 3, 2007: Police file charge-sheets under the Chhattisgarh Special Public Security Act and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in the court of Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Satyabhama Dubey against Sen.Dec 10, 2007: Sen denied bail by two-judge bench of Supreme Court.Dec 31, 2007: Sen awarded R.R. Keithan Gold Medal by the Indian Academy of Social Sciences in recognition of "his outstanding contribution to the advancement of science of Nature-Man-Society for improvement of quality of life of the poor, the downtrodden and the oppressed people of Chhattisgarh".March 15-April 11, 2008: Sen kept in solitary confinement. Prison authorities claim it is for his security.April 21, 2008: Sen awarded Jonathan Mann Award by the Global Health Council.May 30, 2008: Sen's trial begins in Raipur.August 11, 2008: Second bail petition filed in Chhattisgarh High Court in Bilaspur.May 4, 2009: Supreme Court issues notice to Chhattisgarh government on Sen's bail plea. Asks state government to provide "best medical aid" to Sen, who is suffering from a heart ailment.May 25, 2009: Sen granted bail by a vacation bench of the Supreme Court comprising Justice Markandey Katju and Justice Deepak Verma.
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