Shiladitya Chowdhury, small-time farmer who had been detained by police after he dared to question Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in front of a 70,000-strong crowd at a public rally in Belpahari on August 8, was on Friday granted bail by a West Midnapore court.
Earlier, Chowdhury had been re-arrested on August 11 after being initially detained for interrogation.
Even though he was charged with several non-bailable offences such as disrupting a public rally and entering a high security zone, he was granted bail by the court.
His arrest after he was branded a Naxal by Didi had shocked the nation as it was viewed as yet another instance of her intolerance towards criticism.
Mamata had earlier accused a college student of being a Maoist during a panel discussion hosted by a TV channel. A Jadavpur University professor too was arrested by police for circulating an anti-Mamata cartoon.
But in a major setback to the TMC Government, the West Bengal Human Rights Commission (WBHRC)recently directed it to pay `50,000 compensation to the academic for undergoing the traumatic experience. The WBHRC is also looking into Chowdhury’s arrest.