Bombay High Court Disposes Plea to Quash Remarks Against Fr. Stan Swamy

Mumbai, Dec 12, 2025: The Bombay High Court on Thursday disposed of a petition filed in December 2021 by the next of kin of Father Stan Swamy, who sought to clear the now deceased priest’s name from the Elgar Parishad–Bhima Koregaon case. The plea, filed by Fr. Frazer Mascarenhas, former principal of St. Xavier’s College in Mumbai, through senior advocate Mihir Desai, argued that the findings of the special NIA court against Swamy “besmirches” his reputation and body of work in tribal and human rights. The findings, they argued, violated his fundamental right to reputation under Article 21 of the Constitution and should therefore be quashed.

Speaking to Catholic Connect, Fr. Mascarenhas said the NIA’s response — which claimed that there was no ill-treatment of Fr. Stan Swamy and no link between his treatment in jail and his passing away — was precisely what they intended to challenge. “We are questioning that, and therefore we have asked to withdraw the original plaint. We now intend to file a fresh plaint, which the judge has allowed,” he said. He added that it was expected that the government would not admit to wrongdoing and that the next step involved examining the two reports presented in court. “So we will file a fresh complaint,” he stated.

Reflecting on the broader significance of the case, Fr. Mascarenhas said, “Yes, we are happy that there is progress in the case and that we will be following it up. We hope that it will continue to be heard, because it was not being heard for many, several years now.” He added that the effort extends beyond one individual: “This case needs to be taken up not just for Fr. Stan Swamy, but for all those who are being harassed because of political opposition to the policies of the government. It is really on behalf of Indian society that this plaint needs to be taken seriously.”

Fr. Stan passed away from cardiac arrest in a private hospital ahead of his bail hearing in July 2021. He was the 16th and oldest civil liberties activist to be arrested in the case under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act on October 8, 2020. When the matter was heard by a division bench of Justices Ajay Gadkari and Ranjitsinha Bhonsale on Thursday, the NIA — through Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh, assisted by special counsel Chintan Shah — objected to the maintainability of the petition. The agency argued that the prayers in the petition, filed in 2021, had become infructuous and could not proceed, and that it could not be amended at this stage to introduce a new cause of action.

Following the objection, the bench disposed of the petition but granted Mascarenhas liberty to file a fresh plea challenging the Magistrate Inquiry Report, which ruled out wrongdoing in Swamy’s death and termed it a “natural death.” In an earlier hearing in October this year, the State informed the court that the Maharashtra State Human Rights Commission, chaired by Justice (retd.) 

Anant Badar with Member Sanjay Kumar, had on May 2, 2025 accepted the Magistrate's findings, concluding that there was nothing “unnatural” in Swamy’s death and no medical negligence. The matter has come up nearly eight times before five different division benches, with three benches — headed by Justices Prasanna Varale, Sadhana Jadhav, and Revati Mohite-Dere — recusing themselves.

By Catholic Connect Reporter