Ahmedabad

During the hearing of the habeas corpus writ petiton and related alleged abduction case of Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS) convener Hardik Patel, the Gujarat High Court today even suggested that his services can be better utilized to promote other constructive things and public interest campaigns like Clean India Mission.

In a lighter vein Justice M R Shah, who led the division bench hearing the matter, said that the PAAS leader’s energy and appeal can be better utilized for the promotion of campaigns like Swachchh Bharat Abhiyan.

In a completely packed and otherwise tense looking courtroom, where Hardik, his close aides Dinesh Patel, Chirag Patel and many senior police officials were present, a round of laughter was witnessed, when the court made some amusing remarks about his services and the presumption of a blood donation camp being organised by the 22 year old Patel leader.

Even Advocate General, Mr. Kamal Trivedi, who made many strong interventions on behalf of the state government during the proceeding, could not stop his laughter when the court observed lightly that Hardik’s services could be utilized for better things like promotion of Swachch Bharat Abhiyan and the law and order aspects of his presumed blood donation camp. Mr. Trivedi had earlier said that the city gets ‘heightened’ owing to the mere presence of the PAAS leader. The court in lighter vein said that such appeal should be encahsed for other better purposes as well.
The court which took a pretty hard stance against Hardik and his lawyer the last time round on September 24 on the day of first hearing, today sounded somewhat lenient.

In the course of hearing Justice Shah also said,’ The court want to strike a balance. Courts are not to punish any innocent. We want an amicable resolution in the larger interest of the society.’

The court which had hit hard the petitioners on the first day of hearing appealed both sides for restrain on several occasion today saying mere allegation and counter allegation may further aggravate the situation.

Justice Shah also spoke in Gujarati for a while on a few occasion saying that the corpus (Hardik) must also understand what was being said.

The court however said that it can’t take any chances so far as security aspects of the judicial body was concerned as any untoward thing did not happen with a caution beforehand. Justice Shah commented this when Hardik’s advocate Mr. Magukiya said that his client had appealed his supporters to not to gather around the court as a mark of respect to it. He also said that he himself had ensured that during the funereal of Shetang Patel, the Patidar youth of Bapunagar locality in the city who had died in police custody during the violence, no untoward situation came up.

The Court also said that no good result of anything can come with ‘impatient’.

It, however, said that such comments which demoralize the police should not be made.

The prohibitory orders were in place in and around the court today and a para military force was also deployed as a precautionary measure in the view of the hearing of the sensitive case.

Hardik and his outfit had hogged the limelight following his arrest on August 25 which had led to wide spread violence in the state claiming 10 lives.

DeshGujarat