Climate activist Disha Ravi, who is currently facing prosecution for her alleged involvement in sharing a toolkit supporting the farmers’ protest in 2021, has urged the Delhi High Court to modify a bail condition that requires her to seek prior permission from the trial court before traveling abroad. The plea was presented before Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma, who will be issuing an order at 4 p.m. after hearing arguments from Ravi’s counsel and the police.

Ravi was arrested by the Delhi Police on February 13, 2021, for allegedly sharing a toolkit related to the farmers’ protest on social media. She was granted bail by a trial court on February 23, 2021, with certain conditions, including the requirement of prior permission to leave the country.

In her plea before the High Court, Ravi has requested a modification of this bail condition to the extent that she only needs to inform the trial court before traveling abroad. Her counsel argued that she frequently needs to travel abroad on short notices and has already done so three times after the bail order was passed. The counsel also mentioned that a Lookout Circular (LOC) has been issued against Ravi. They emphasized that she has not violated any of the bail conditions.

However, the State’s counsel opposed the plea, stating that inconvenience alone cannot be a ground for modification. The trial court had previously dismissed Ravi’s plea to modify the bail condition in an order dated August 9.

The trial court judge explained that the investigating agency is collecting crucial evidence regarding suspected persons based in foreign countries and that modifying the condition at this stage would be detrimental to the investigation. Ravi was arrested in Bengaluru on February 13, 2021, by a Cyber Cell team of the Delhi Police.

The plea will now be decided by the Delhi High Court after considering the arguments presented by both sides.