Ahmedabad

Gujarat High Court today heard the submissions of the government counsel on the bail plea of the jailed Patidar quota stir leader Hardik Patel in the two sedition cases against him during which he presented the points pertaining to evidences against the PAAS convener and some of his aides regarding their involvement in the violence during the agitation.

In the court of Justice A J Desai, government Counsel Mitesh Amin submitted the evidence regarding telephonic conversation between Hardik and his aide Alpesh Kathiria (one of the absconding accused in the sedition case lodged by crime branch of Ahmedabad police). He said that Hardik and his aides including Surat based Alpesh Kathiriya had posted many instigating statements on a whatsapp group active at the time of the agitation.

With regard to the Surat crime branch lodged sedition case, Mr. Amin read out from the telephone transcript attached with the charge-sheet of the case, which allegedly shows that Hardik had instructed Alpesh to tell Vipul Desai (one of the accused whom the PAAS leader had given the suggestion to kill policemen rather than committing suicide) to change his statement.

The government counsel continued his submission for around one hour after which the court fixed the next date of hearing on June 13

Notably on the last date of hearing on May 4, the state government had refused to accept the undertaking given by Hardik in the High Court a day before in which he had assured that if granted bail he would not do anything by act or speech which incite people or trigger violence, however he maintained that he would participate in the agitation in peaceful manner.

Hardik’s advocate Zubin Bharda had already completed his submission on the bail plea. The court would pronounce its verdict after the completion of the submission of the prosecution.

Hardik is facing two cases of sedition. One was lodged in Amroli police station of Surat district in October last year for his alleged on camera suggestion to Vipul (now on bail) to kill policeman rather than committing suicide. He was arrested in the case in October from Rajkot and has been lodged in the Lajpore central jail of Surat since then. Two of his co-accused in the case Chirag Desai and Vipul Desai has got bail.

Another case of sedition was lodged against Hardik and five others (including Chirag, Ketan and Dinesh Patel) by the crime branch of Ahmedabad police for his alleged involvement and plotting of the violence post a pro reservation rally on August 25 here. The three co-accused have got conditional bail from the high court after no objection from the state on their undertaking to not to participate in the agitation, however his bail pleas were rejected.

– DeshGujarat