NEW DELHI: A Delhi court on Monday granted regular bail to the married couple accused of hurling racial slurs at their neighbours from Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur, noting that the probe in the case was complete.
Additional Sessions Judge Samar Vishal granted relief to Harsh Priya Singh and Ruby Jain after taking on record a status report filed by the investigating officer (IO), who informed the court that the investigation in the matter was complete.
The court was hearing the application filed by accused persons, who were produced before the court on expiry of their 30-day interim bail granted on March 11.
A personal bond and surety bond of Rs 25,000 each have already been furnished by them for securing interim bail.
The judge noted the submissions made by the accused’s counsel that during the interim bail period, they had complied with all the bail conditions imposed on the previous order.
The accused have also vacated their residence at a building in Malviya Nagar where the incident occurred and relocated to a new locality, the counsel submitted. The court noted that the status report filed by the IO also confirmed compliance with the earlier order.
The counsel further claimed before the court that the couple had suffered significant damage to their reputation due to this case and had also apologised publicly on social media and personally to the victims in the presence of their landlord.
The prosecution opposed the bail application, claiming, “The victims had to move homes on very short notice as they were being hounded by the media, causing them significant financial distress as they were only students with limited means.”
Prosecution’s case
According to the prosecution, the accused couple made abusive and derogatory remarks against the three women from Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur during a row over debris from the installation of an air conditioner at their rented accommodation.