Elgar Parishad case: HC seeks Sudha Bharadwaj’s health report by May 17, to hear medical bail plea on May 21

Bharadwaj, who is lodged in Byculla women’s prison, will be taken to state-run JJ Hospital for health check-up today (Thursday).

Advocate Yug Mohit Chaudhry for the petitioner submitted that Bharadwaj is in a prison ward with 50 other women, “incarcerated in extremely unsanitary conditions without any possibility of physical distancing”.

He submitted that Bharadwaj suffers from comorbidities and there are issues about crowding in prison and treatment meted out to inmates.

Additional Public Prosecutor J P Yagnik for the state prison authority submitted that they are taking Bharadwaj to J J Hospital today (Thursday) for medical examination and will submit a report within a week.

Advocate Sandesh Patil for the National Investigation Agency (NIA), the probing agency in Elgaar Parishad case, said that there was no urgency in the matter and it would be unable to file reply within a week due to pandemic situation.

“We understand that officers are working at 15 % capacity, let us see the medical report first,” the bench said.

The Court directed the prison authority to file a report of medical examination by May 17 and it will hear the plea next week.