GUWAHATI: Arrested Gujarat MLA Jignesh Mevani was on Tuesday sent to five days’ police remand by an Assam court.
He had moved a petition for bail but the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM), Barpeta rejected it. The police had sought 12 days’ custody.
Mevani was on Monday granted bail by the CJM court, Kokrajhar in connection with a case lodged by Arup Kumar Dey, a BJP Executive Member in the autonomous Bodoland Territorial Council, for an alleged controversial tweet against Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Immediately after he was granted bail, the Barpeta police had re-arrested him on the charges of assaulting and outraging the modesty of a woman police officer on April 21 when he was being taken to Kokrajhar by road from the Guwahati airport following his arrest from Gujarat the previous night in connection with the first case.
Meanwhile, some Assam Congress leaders were briefly detained by the Barpeta police on Tuesday while they were taking out a march demanding Mevani’s release.
Congress MP Abdul Khaleque slammed the BJP for allegedly stifling freedom of speech.