Hardik fails to appear during hearing of sedition case in Ahmedabad; govt. counsel seeks NBW, matter to be heard on Feb 7

Ahmedabad: Former convener of Patidar quota agitation outfit Patidar Anamat Aandolan Samiti (PAAS) and Congress leader Hardik Patel against whom a non bailable warrant (NBW) was issued yesterday by a court in Morbi district for not appearing before it during the hearing of a case against him today remained absent in another case in a court here.

Hardik did not turn up during the hearing of a sedition case being heard by the court of ADJ, B J Ganatra here again. This court had last months issued a NBW against him due to which he was arrested.
The other two accused in the case Dinesh Bambhaniya and Chirag Patel appeared in the court but Hardik did not. The government counsel Sudhir Brahambhatt opposed the plea of Hardik’s advocate for exemption from personal appearance. He also demanded issuance of NBW but the court fixed the next date of hearing on February 7 to take a call on it.

Notably Hardik was re-arrested soon after his release from the Sabarmati central jail here on January 23 in connection with two cases of violation of administrative notification but was finally released after getting bail in the cases on January 24. The court in Tankara town of Morbi has also issued the NBW for holding a rally in the town in April 2017 without official permission. It has also issued such warrant against Congress MLA from Dhoraji Lalit Vasoya and two others.

He was arrested on January 18 after a local court had issued non-bailable warrant (NBW) against him in a sedition case, and was granted bail by the court on January 22 in that matter. But he was again arrested in connection with a case of violation of a public order in Mansa town of Gandhinagar soon after his release from the jail on January 23. He was taken to a court there and after getting bail the Sidhhpur police in Patan district of North Gujarat took his custody for production in a court there in connection with another case of violation of administrative orders/notification in 2017.

Notably the sedition case was lodged by the crime branch of Ahmedabd police for the widespread violence that erupted after his Patidar quota rally here on the GMDC ground on August 25, 2015.

Hardik was earlier arrested from near Hansalpur crossing in his home-taluka of Viramgam of Ahmedabad districts on January 18, the day the NBW was issued by the court of Additional Sessions Judge B J Ganatra. He was sent to jail under judicial custody the same night.The NBW was issued due to his repeated non-appearance on the dates of hearing in the sedition case.

Hardik was booked in another sedition case in Surat for his alleged provocative suggestion to his aides to kill policemen and he was also on bail in that matter. He was jailed in these cases and had also spent six months outside Gujarat as part of his bail condition. Several government run buses, police stations were torched and other public property including railway tracks damaged during the violence that had erupted after the rally in Ahmedabad. The crime branch of the city police in its charge sheet alleged that Hardik and his aides had spread the violence under a conspiracy.

There were numerous other cases also lodged against the former PAAS leader.

Another court here had also two days back rejected the anticipatory bail plea of Hardik in connection with a case lodged for misbehaving with government officials at GMDC ground after his rally in August 2015.

DeshGujarat