Swiss national released from Indian prison
A 24-year-old man from Geneva arrested in India for allegedly supporting the Maoist movement in the state of Kerala has been released on bail.
Bail was set at INR100,000 (CHF1,476) by the Kerala high court, his local lawyer Ramesh Babu told swissinfo.ch.
The Swiss, who cannot be named for privacy reasons, was reunited with his girlfriend who he had been travelling with at the time of his arrest.
He has not been granted permission to leave the country yet. His lawyer said his passport has only been temporarily withheld by the local court, who are waiting for assurances from the Swiss embassy that he meets bail conditions.
“We are in the process of examining the guarantees demanded by the Indian authorities that will enable him to leave the country,” his Geneva-based lawyer Nicolas Capt confirmed.
Even if he is allowed to leave India, the accused is required to be present at the hearing when his case eventually comes to court.
The activist was arrested on July 29 for violating the terms of his tourist visa by allegedly taking part in political activities. Prosecutors said he attended a memorial meeting for a Maoist leader near Thrissur. He denies any criminal intentions.
A lower court had earlier refused his bail plea.
In compliance with the JTI standards
More: SWI swissinfo.ch certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here. Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.