human rights defender

Surendra Gadling

© The Scroll

HRD's year of birth

1968

HRD's Gender

Man

Type of HRD

  • Lawyer

HRD's thematic area of engagement

  • Civil and political rights
  • Defenders living in remote areas

HRD's geographical origin

Semi urban

Current Status

Released on bail

HRD's bio and work

Surendra Gadling is one of the "BK 16"—the group of 16 human rights defenders, lawyers, scholars, and activists who were targeted by the Indian state and arbitrarily detained under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) in connection with the 2018 Bhima Koregaon–Elgar Parishad case.

Detained since

Jun 6, 2018

Date of release

May 4, 2026

Charge(s)

  • Anti-government propaganda
  • Creating disturbances
  • Damage to public property
  • Other

Sentence

Charges Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 Sections 13, 16, 17, 18, 18B, 20, 38, 39, and 40; IPC Sections 120B, 115, 121, 121A, 124A, 153A, and 505(1)(b).

Latitude: 19.077414257627105

Longitude: 73.0692424013277

Geolocation of detention

Country or area of detention

Region of detention

  • Asia: Southern Asia

Location of detention - City/Town

Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra

Location of detention - Facility

Taloja Central Prison, Maharashtra

Recent case update / evolution

Bombay High Court on 04 May 2026 granted bail.

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