SC Grants Bail To Akhil Gogoi In UAPA Case

The Supreme Court has directed the release of Sivasagar MLA and Raijor Dal chief Akhil Gogoi on bail in a case under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) for his offensive against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and alleged Maoist links.

The court however upheld an order by the Gauhati High Court which had set aside Gogoi's discharge in the case.

The order was reserved by a bench of justices V Ramasubramanian and Pankaj Mithal after arguments were concluded in the matter.

Earlier last month, the apex court had reserved an order on Gogoi's plea challenging the Gauhati High Court order which has allowed the probe agency to frame charges against Gogoi and three others in connection with the protests.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) in Gauhati High Court challenged the order of a Special NIA Court in July 2021, giving a clean chit to the four accused.

The High Court, after hearing the plea, asked the probe agency to proceed with framing charges after reopening the case. 

Gogoi and three others were booked for the offences in relation to December 2019 anti-CAA protests and his alleged links to Maoist organisations.

All four were charged under the UAPA Act and Sedition (section 124A), promoting enmity between religious groups (section 153A) and 153B (Statement against national integration) under the Indian Penal Code.

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