The Bombay High Court on Wednesday granted bail to Sharad Kalaskar, one of the two men convicted in the 2013 murder of rationalist Narendra Dabholkar.
A division bench of Justices AS Gadkari and RR Bhonsale passed the order.
A detailed copy of the judgment is awaited.
Dabholkar, founder of the Maharashtra Andhashraddha Nirmoolan Samiti, who was shot dead by two assailants during a morning walk in Pune in August 2013.
The case was initially investigated by Pune Police before being handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in 2014. The CBI arrested the accused between 2016 and 2019 and charged them under provisions including murder, criminal conspiracy, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, and the Arms Act.
The High Court had earlier monitored the probe from 2015 but later discontinued oversight once the trial commenced.
A Pune sessions court on May 10 convicted Kalaskar and co-accused Sachin Andure for the murder and sentenced them to life imprisonment and also imposed a fine of ₹5 lakh on each.
The sessions court held that it was proved beyond doubt that Andure and Kalaskar had carried out the shooting.
However, it acquitted three other accused—Dr Virendrasinh Tawade, Vikram Bhave and Sanjeev Punalekar—citing lack of reliable evidence linking them to the crime, despite noting suspicion and motive in parts.
Kalaskar moved the High Court in 2024 challenging the sessions court verdict and seeking suspension of his life sentence and bail.
Dabholkar's family has separately challenged the acquittal of the three others before the High Court.