HYDERABAD/KARIMNAGAR: After spending three days and two nights at Karimnagar district jail, BJP state president Bandi Sanjay Kumar walked out to a warm welcome by party workers on Wednesday after the Telangana High Court ordered the prisons department to release him. Union Minister of State for Chemicals and Fertilisers Bhagwanth Khuba who waited outside the jail congratulated Sanjay as he came out even as scores of party activists raised slogans in his support.
Sanjay was arrested on Sunday amidst high voltage drama while he was on a deeksha at his office in Karimnagar. He was produced in court the next day, which remanded him to judicial custody for 14 days. The Telangana High Court, after hearing arguments on his bail petition, found fault with the lower court for mechanically passing the remand order and directed the DG of Prisons to set him free forthwith on furnishing a personal bond. After his release from the prison, Sanjay once again hauled the TRS government over the coals for its dictatorial policies.
“Don’t gloat over the fact that you were successful in sending me to jail. I am proud to say that I went to jail for the cause of teachers. In fact, it is the ninth time I have been sent to jail but each time it is for espousing the people’s cause and not because I did something illegal,” he said and vowed to continue his fight until the state government repealed the “highly discriminatory” GO 317 on transfers of teachers and government employees.
Earlier in the day after hearing arguments on Sanjay’s bail petition, Justice Ujjal Bhuyan of Telangana High observed that prima facie it appears that the magistrate had not applied his judicial mind while remanding Sanjay Kumar to judicial custody till January 17, 2022. The court further commented that it was very clear that the petitioner was leading a political demonstration, which is not at all unnatural in a democracy and going by the submission of the prosecution, the petitioner and his followers had flouted Covid-19 rules laid down by the state and also resisted, when police tried to disperse them, which caused injuries to some police personnel.
The court opined that the Magistrate remanded the petitioner and the others on the request of the police, and a memo filed by adding Section 333 of IPC on the ground that the Assistant Commissioner of Police had sustained a fracture on a finger of his right hand during the attack. But in the absence of a medical certificate, a prayer was made before the Magistrate in Crime No. 2/2022, which appears to have been granted by the Magistrate, which shows that the Magistrate has not applied his mind while granting permission to add the Section, that too when the medical certificate was awaited. Meanwhile, the BJP which gave a call for a state-wide bandh on Monday, withdrew it considering the aggravating pandemic situation in the state.
No coercive steps against Arvind
In another case, the High Court asked the Telangana police not to take any coercive steps against another BJP MP Dharmapuri Arvind who has been booked by Madannapet Police under the provision of SC/ST Atrocities Act in Nizamabad. Arvind filed a lunch motion petition seeking quashing of FIR registered against him. He urged the bench to pass the directions to the police not to take any coercive action against him, including the arrest.
Meanwhile, Hyderabad police registered a fresh case against Arvind at Banjara Hills police station for making derogatory and abusive comments against police personnel on Wednesday. On Monday, when a team from Banjara Hills police station went to the MP’s home in Banjara Hills to convey to him about the prohibitory orders in place, Arvind allegedly made derogatory comments against the police force. Videos of the entire incident went viral on social media platforms. Taking a serious note of the incident, police registered a suo moto case. Earlier, two more cases have been registered against Arvind at Banjara Hills police station, for making derogatory comments in a press conference.