Gautam Navlakha was in touch with Hizbul Mujahideen, Bombay HC told

Mumbai: The state government on Wednesday claimed before the Bombay high court that the e-mails and letters retrieved from the laptops of the co-accused in case along with activist Gautam Navlakha showed  that Navlakha was in touch with Hizbul Mujahideen and Kashmiri separatist leaders from 2011 to 2014.

The statement has been made when on last hearing the HC observed that prima facie there seemed to be nothing on record against Navalakha. The division bench of Justice Ranjit More and Justice Bharati Dangre is hearing petition filed by Navalakha seeking quashing of FIR filed against him by the Pune police.

Navlakha, along with a few other activists, is facing a case for alleged links with Naxals.

The bench on Wednesday extended the interim protection from arrest, granted to Navalakha, till further orders. On July 5, the high court had granted him interim protection from arrest till July 23.

Aruna Pai, the counsel for Pune police, said some of the documents recovered from the laptops of co-accused Rona Wilson and Surendra Gadling showed that Navlakha and various Naxal groups he was associated with had conducted “bilateral talks” with Hizbul leaders. She stated before the court that Navalakha had been liasioning with banned terrorist organisations including Hizbul Mujahideen since 2011.

Navlakha’s lawyer Yug Mohit Chaudhary denied all the charges. However, advocate Pai contended that protection from arrest was coming in the way of investigation. She further alleged that between 2011 and 2014, Navlakha was in touch with Kashmiri separatist leaders Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Shakil Bakshi.

The Pune police has booked Navlakha and others under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and other offences.

According to Pune police, inflammatory speeches at Elgar Parishad conclave held in Pune on December 31, 2017, led to violence near the Bhima Koregaon war memorial in Pune district and the Parishad had been supported by Maoists.