Former Delhi University professor GN Saibaba passed away at a state-run hospital due to post-operative complications on Saturday, seven months after being acquitted in a case involving alleged Maoist links. He was 54 years old.
Saibaba had been suffering from a gallbladder infection and underwent surgery two weeks earlier, but complications arose afterward. According to an official, he passed away around 9 pm on Saturday.
For the past 20 days, Saibaba had been receiving treatment at Nizam’s Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS).
Acquitte in UAPA case
In March, the Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court acquitted Saibaba and five others in the Maoist links case, as the prosecution failed to prove the charges against him. The court also overturned his life sentence, declaring the sanction obtained by the prosecution to charge him under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) as invalid.
Following his acquittal, Saibaba, who used a wheelchair, was released from Nagpur Central Jail after spending 10 years behind bars.
Who was GN Saibaba?
In August of this year, Saibaba had alleged that for nine months, authorities had not taken him to a hospital despite paralysis on the left side of his body, instead administering only painkillers during his time in Nagpur Central Jail, where he had been held since his 2014 arrest.
The former English professor had accused the police of arresting him to suppress his voice, stating that he had been warned by authorities that he would be falsely implicated in a case if he continued speaking out. He also alleged that Maharashtra Police had taken him from Delhi and threatened both him and his family. During his arrest, Saibaba claimed that police had forcibly dragged him from his wheelchair, causing a severe hand injury that affected his nervous system.
CPI MLA K Sambasiva Rao expressed his condolences, calling Saibaba’s death a loss to society.
With inputs from agencies
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