Supreme Court judge, Justice M.M. Sundresh, on Tuesday recused himself from hearing the bail plea of Surendra Pundlik Gadling, a lawyer who has been in jail since 2017 in connection with the alleged torching of nearly 40 vehicles transporting iron ore from the Surajgarh mines in Maharashtra’s Gadchiroli district by Maoists.
Besides the Gadchiroli incident, Gadling is also facing prosecution in connection with the Bhima Koregaon violence.
On Tuesday, the matter was listed before a bench of Justice Sundresh and Justice N. Kotiswar Singh, but the former chose to recuse himself from the case. No reason was cited for the recusal. The matter has now been referred to the Chief Justice of India, B.R. Gavai, for constituting an appropriate bench to deal with the issue.
Gadling, who has been booked by Maharashtra Police for various offences under the UAPA (Unlawful Activities Prevention Act) and the Indian Penal Code, had filed the present appeal in 2023 against a Bombay High Court judgment of January 2023, which had rejected his bail plea and prima facie found him to be part of the Maoist network engaged in unlawful and terrorist activities.
Although the notice was issued to the state of Maharashtra in 2023, the matter could not be listed for any substantive hearing.