Further remands for Hardik, aides arrested in another cases

Ahmedabad

Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti(PAAS) leader Hardik Patel was today sent to further two days police custody(remand) by Ahmedabad Metro Court in connection with Sedition case filed against him by Crime Branch of Ahmedabad Police. Hardik was produced in court as his 7 days police custody was over today.

According to Rahul Patel, ACP of Crime Branch there are some points that still need investigation for which 7 days extension of remand was sought before the court. In response to this, the court granted remand till 4.00 pm on 3 November.

Crime Branch sources say Hardik has shared the meaning of some of the code words used by him and his aides during the Patel agitation. Code word ‘Prasad aapvo’ was used for beating up the police men. Code word ‘form a blood bank’ was used to cause injury to police men and code word ‘Shraddhanjali’ was used for road block agitation.

According to Hardik’s lawyer and Gujarat Congress legal cell head BM Mangukiya, one of the reasons for seeking further custody of Hardik, as told to the court was that the details of 354 WhatsApp groups and their admins were yet to be investigated.

Meanwhile Hardik’s three aides whose 7+2 days remand were over today were also produced in Metro court. They were sent to judicial custody by court. They were also arrested in sedition case. Two of them Chirag and Ketan Patel were arrested by Special Operation Group(SOG) of Ahmedabad Police through transfer warrant while another accused Dinesh Patel was arrested by Mahesana Police through transfer warrant.

Police told media persons that Hardik was one of the 12 accused in the case and he too would be arrested through transfer warrant, once his remands are over. For now Ketan and Chirag Patel are arrested in this case.

Hardik Patel who started the quota agitation for Patel caste people and later converted the agitation into anti-BJP government stir was first detained by Rajkot police when he was going to cricket stadium there for protest during the live international one day match on October 18. He was arrested by Rajkot police on the same day for insulting the national flag. Next day he was released on bail by Rajkot court. He was immediately arrested from outside the court by Surat police crime branch in connection with sedition charge. After his remands given by Surat court were over, he was sent to judicial custody(prison) from where the Ahmedabad police crime branch arrested him for sedition charge filed in Ahmedabad. Thus he is under police custody since October 18. He is likely to be arrested in at least two more case filed against him in different police stations.

There was a time when Hardik’s arrest would attract mobile internet ban, deployment of Rapid Action Force(RAF), road blocks, incidents of violence and protests by groups of Patidar community people in streets. However in last few days, Hardik has lost support in major section of community, and therefore his arrests have not made any problem for the government even after best efforts employed by his supporters to lodge protests on roads through circulating messages on social media.

– DeshGujarat