Pawan Kheda: Passport controversy: Supreme Court refuses to give relief to Pawan Kheda, rejects plea to increase transit anticipatory bail. india news
Supreme Court Congress on Friday refused to extend transit anticipatory bail security for leader Pawan Kheda, and asked him to approach a competent court in Assam in connection with a case related to allegations against the wife of Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.A bench of Justices JK Maheshwari and Atul S Chandurkar rejected Khera’s plea seeking extension of the relief period till April 20 so that he can approach a court in Assam.
Court clarified earlier order
While refusing to grant the relief, the top court clarified that its earlier order by the Telangana High Court staying the grant of transit anticipatory bail would have no adverse effect on the court having jurisdiction in Assam.“The court deciding the application will not be adversely affected by any order granting transit bail or otherwise,” the bench said, according to news agency ANI. He said that any anticipatory bail plea should be decided on its merits, without being influenced by previous orders.The court also said that if the court is not functioning then Khera is free to approach the appropriate court and seek assistance from the registry if necessary.“In view of the above, the respondent is free to approach the appropriate court. If the court is not functioning, a request may be made to the court registry, and it will act as per law. With the above observations, the petition is disposed of.”
Background of the case
This development comes after the Supreme Court had earlier stayed the Telangana High Court order granting one week’s transit anticipatory bail to Khera, effectively making him arrestable by the Assam Police.During the previous hearing, the court had questioned the jurisdiction of the Telangana High Court in considering Khera’s plea in a case registered in Assam. The state had argued that Kheda was engaged in “forum-shopping” by approaching a court outside the state where the FIR was filed.The case pertains to allegations that Kheda made false statements against the wife of the Chief Minister of Assam.The controversy stems from a press conference held on April 5, where Khera had alleged that Sarma’s wife Riniki Bhuyan Sharma held multiple passports and owned foreign assets, which were not disclosed in the chief minister’s election affidavit for the April 9 assembly elections. Both Sarma and his wife rejected the claims as “false and fabricated”.Following the remarks, a case was registered against Khera at the Guwahati Crime Branch police station under sections 175 (false statement in relation to an election), 35 and 318 (cheating) of the Indian Justice Code.With Friday’s order, the Supreme Court has reiterated that Khera should seek relief from an Assam court, which will independently assess his anticipatory bail plea.