The arguments in the appeal of former Delhi University professor G N Saibaba and his four accomplices against their conviction under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) in a Maoist linkages case were concluded by the Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court on Friday.
The division bench of Justices Vinay Joshi and Valmiki Menezes presided over the appeal hearings and ordered both parties to submit written submissions by Monday.
In the Maoist ties case, in addition to Saibaba, Mahesh Kariman Tirki, Hem Keshavdatta Mishra, Prashant Rahi Narayan Sanglikar, and Vijay Nan Tirki have filed an appeal.
Saibaba and the four other defendants were exonerated on October 14, 2022, by a High Court panel of Justices Rohit Deo and Anil Pansare on the grounds that the authorisation to prosecute them under the UAPA was unlawful.
The ruling was contested before the Supreme Court by the Maharashtra government.
The Supreme Court overturned the conviction in April of this year and sent the case back to the top court for a new, merits-based hearing within four months.
The chief judge of the Bombay High Court was given the order by a bench of Justices M R Shah and CT Ravikumar to have the appeals of Saibaba and the other defendants heard by a different bench rather than the one that had previously exonerated them.
