Mumbai: Observing that prima facie there is no material to connect him to activities against the unity of the nation, a magistrate’s court on Thursday granted bail to former student of Tata Institute of Social Sciences Abhirup Paul (32), arrested a month ago in a case stemming from an unauthorised campus event to pay homage to the late Delhi University professor G N Saibaba last year.“Prima facie, except suspicion, there is no material to link the activities of the accused with mindset of Maoist or against the nation or associating with banned organisation against India…considering the allegations against the accused, prima facie, I am of the view that the investigating officer had got sufficient time for investigation of the offence and the activities of the accused. However, prima facie there is no material against the accused to connect him against the unity of nation,” additional chief judicial magistrate Dattatray Shankarrao Khedekar said.An FIR was filed against nine students, including Paul, based on a complaint by TISS that an unauthorised event was held on the campus on October 12, 2025, to commemorate the first death anniversary of Saibaba, who had spent nearly a decade in a Nagpur jail after being accused of links with Maoists. Saibaba was acquitted of all charges in the UAPA case in March 2024 before his death that year.The prosecution alleged that the participants had raised slogans, including demands for the release of former student activists Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam, who are facing trial under the UAPA. It also claimed that the event was part of a planned effort to create ideological divisions among students and disturb law and order.Seven students, except Paul and Kamakhya Das (23), were granted anticipatory bail in August after the court found that the allegations against them were largely confined to participation at the event. Paul was arrested on August 7 after his anticipatory bail plea was rejected by the sessions court.In a 11-page order, the magistrate observed that Paul’s membership in the Progressive Students Forum at TISS, participation in the commemoration activity, and uttering of slogans, combined with the investigating officer’s probe, prima facie yield no supporting material to indicate that he derived any benefit from a social network.It was further observed that there is prima facie no material linking the accused to a Maoist mindset and that the mere possession of PDF books does not justify inferring such a connection.The magistrate also stated that granting bail to the “young offender” is necessary to “maintain” his career, especially since there is no incriminating evidence against him beyond mere suspicion. Therefore, keeping the accused behind bars would be unjust.“The interrogation against the accused is carried out for a sufficient period and in such circumstances, no further custody of the accused is required…,” the magistrate said. He also cited the interim relief from arrest granted to co-accused Das by Bombay high court.Seeking bail, Paul’s lawyer Vijay Hiremath submitted he is young and there is no involvement as alleged by the prosecution. Hiremath also submitted that no incriminating material was brought on record during custodial interrogation.Opposing bail, the prosecution alleged that Paul provided misleading information regarding deleted messages and applications on this mobile phone. It was further submitted that he is a member of the Progressive Students Forum, which it claimed “was an organisation working against the administration of the institute”. It was also alleged that various pamphlets were being circulated on social media to exert pressure to grant him bail.The prosecution also alleged that PDFs of Maoist literature were found on the accused’s phone, suggesting active support for the ideology and a risk that they will continue promoting it if granted bail. The prosecution also claimed that the discovery of documents related to the ‘Purba Bangla Maoist Party’ suggests potential ties to Bangladeshi Maoist organisations, indicating involvement in a larger, cross border network.Granting bail to Paul, the magistrate also imposed conditions barring him from committing a similar offence, threatening or inducing witnesses, tampering with evidence, or leaving India without prior permission. Paul was also directed to submit residence proof, recent photographs, mobile numbers, and identity and address proof of two blood relatives.The magistrate clarified that all observations were limited to deciding bail and “shall not influence the court in the way of decision of case on its own merit”.
