The Supreme Court on Wednesday questioned the police and prison authorities in Maharashtra for not releasing activist Ramesh Gaichor, who is accused in the Bhima Koregaon case, who was granted three-day temporary bail on August 26 to meet his ailing father, Live Law reported.

He was released from jail following the court’s observations, PTI quoted the authorities as having informed the bench on Thursday.

A division bench of Justices Ajay Gadkari and Ranjitsinha Bhonsale was informed that despite a bail order last month, the superintendent of prisons of the Taloja Central Jail near Navi Mumbai had not released Gaichor, citing several public holidays in recent weeks.

The court said that it had noted in its August 26 order that the bail was being granted “only and only on humanitarian grounds”.

“So humanity is put to rest?” the bench asked the public prosecutor Mankunwar Deshmukh. “Why did you not release him? Is this all just to harass him? Why did you not comply with our orders? From where does the superintendent come and ask for a release warrant of magistrate?”

The public prosecutor said that while the state had complied with all orders of the High Court in the case, there was confusion on the part of the superintendent about Section 388 of the Criminal Procedure Code, Live Law reported.

The section stipulates that a person granted bail by a High Court in an appeal against a lower court’s order can be released after a release warrant is issued by the trial court or the magistrate.

The bench said that Gaichor was granted temporary bail, not regular bail, Live Law reported.

It also said that its order was passed on a plea filed under a section of the National Investigation Agency Act that did not require the process under Section 288 of the CrPC to be followed.

The public prosecutor apologised on behalf of the prison officials and said that an apology affidavit will be submitted to the court.

The apology was submitted on Thursday, PTI reported.

While granting him the temporary bail, the court had noted that Gaichor has been in custody since September 2020 and has not met his father in nearly five years, The Hindu had reported. Hospital records submitted before the bench showed that his 76-year-old father was briefly admitted to a hospital in June for age-related ailments.

The bench had directed Gaichor to be released for three days – September 9 to September 11 – on furnishing a Rs 25,000 cash security with the jail authorities.

Gaichor had earlier sought two-week interim bail from a special National Investigation Agency court. The plea was rejected on July 1 after the court observed that his father’s medical reports did not indicate a serious condition, The Hindu reported.

The activist had challenged the NIA court’s order in the High Court on August 1.

Gaichor is among 16 activists, academicians and lawyers who have been charged under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act for their alleged role in instigating caste violence at Bhima Koregaon near Pune in January 2018.

Gaichor was among the organisers of the Elgar Parishad event, held on December 31, 2017, following which the violence took place.

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