Bhima Koregaon case: Court pulls up NIA for not giving electronic evidence copies to Gautam Navlakha
The activist’s lawyer said that the central agency earlier filed an affidavit claiming that it had provided the clones to all the accused persons.
A special court on Tuesday pulled up the National Investigation Agency for failing to provide cloned copies of the electronic evidence it is relying on in the Bhima Koregaon case to human rights activist Gautam Navlakha, the Leaflet reported.
Special judge Rajesh Kataria noted that the agency has not complied with Section 207 of the Code of Criminal Procedure in the last four years, despite several court orders.
The section states that the magistrate has to furnish the accused persons with copies of the statements and evidence that the prosecution is relying upon.
Navlakha has been accused of being involved in the Bhima Koregaon case, which pertains to caste violence in a village near Pune in 2018. He was among 16 people arrested under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act for allegedly plotting the violence.
On December 19, the Bombay High Court granted him bail but stayed the order to allow the National Investigation Agency to appeal against it before the Supreme Court.
On Tuesday, the National Investigation Agency court was hearing an application by Navlakha seeking that the agency be directed to provide him copies of the evidence on electronic devices seized from him by the investigating authorities.
The application said that despite repeated requests to the investigating agency under Section 207 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, Navlakha has not been given access to compact discs which are evidence furnished by the prosecution in the case.
On Tuesday, the agency told the court that only two sets of copies of the electronic evidence had been received from the forensic science laboratory. A copy has been submitted to the court, while the other one is with the prosecution and not sealed, the Leaflet reported.
Advocate Shifa Khan, appearing for the activist, said that the central agency previously filed an affidavit claiming that it had provided copies of the evidence to all the accused persons in the Bhima Koregaon case.
The agency is set to move an application before the court on the next hearing on November 25, seeking permission to send the sealed material to the forensic science laboratory to prepare copies for Navlakha.