Fr Swamy told NIA about planting of evidence, says colleague

Father Stan Swamy, an accused inthe Elgar Parishad-Maoist link case jailed since October lastyear, had told the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on atleast four occasions during his interrogation that fakeevidence had been planted on his computer, the activist'scolleague Father Solomon said on Tuesday.

Solomon was speaking at an online press conferenceattended by family, friends, and lawyers of the 16 activistsand academicians accused and currently in custody in the case.

He is director of Bagaicha Social Centre in Ranchi,Jharkhand, where Swamy worked.

The press conference was organised in the wake of areport by a United States-based digital forensics firm, whichstated that an attacker used malware to infiltrate a laptopbelonging to activist Rona Wilson before his arrest, andinserted at least 10 incriminating letters on his computer.

During his interrogation in Ranchi by the NIA betweenJuly and August last year, Swamy told the agency at least onfour occasions that he disowned the documents cited by theagency as incriminating, and that such documents might havebeen ''intercalated'' (to insert among existing elements),Solomon said.

''Some letters by the lokmanch had been edited, wordshad been added or inserted. For instance, a letter startedwith the greeting of johar that is common in Jharkhand. Butthe unusual word 'lal' had been added. This made Stan raisequestions on the authenticity of the documents,'' he claimed.

Senior advocate Mihir Desai, the counsel for severalactivists accused in the Elgar Parishad-Maoists link case, whowas also present at the press conference, said the digitalfirm's report punched a major hole'' in the prosecution'sstory as the latter consistently relied on electronic evidencein the case to oppose bail pleas, seek extension of custodyetc.

Those present at the press conference demanded that anindependent probe be conducted into the malware report and the16 arrested in the case be granted bail immediate bail.