The Supreme Court on Monday extended the period of interim bail granted to Congress leader Pawan Khera in a case related to his alleged objectionable remarks against Prime Minister Narendra Modi till March 3. The Assam Police arrested Khera in connection with the case last week. A three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud took note of the submissions made by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who appeared in the court on behalf of the Assam government, that the state police wanted to file its reply.
Additional Advocate General Garima Prasad, appearing in the matter for the Uttar Pradesh government, said she will also file her response in the matter. The bench took note of the submissions and fixed Khera's plea for hearing on March 3, making it clear that the interim bail, granted to him on February 23, will remain in force till then."List on Friday. The counter-affidavits (replies of the Assam and Uttar Pradesh governments) to be filed Ad-interim protection (interim bail) granted to extend till the next date of hearing," the bench, also comprising justices PS Narasimha and JB Pardiwala, said in its order.
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Khera was arrested from the Delhi airport after he was de-boarded from a plane that was supposed to take him to Raipur in connection with his alleged remarks against Modi made at a press conference in Mumbai on February 17. The Congress leader obtained bail from a magisterial court here on February 23 after the CJI-led bench granted him interim bail during an urgent hearing earlier in the day."In order to enable the petitioner (Khera) to apply for regular bail before the jurisdictional court, upon the FIRs being transferred to one jurisdiction, we direct that the petitioner shall be released on interim bail by the court of the competent magistrate at Delhi where he is to be produced this evening," the apex court had said.
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"The above order shall remain in operation till February 28," it had said. The apex court, which had listed the matter for hearing on February 27, had issued notices to the states of Assam and Uttar Pradesh, seeking their responses to Khera's plea for transferring and clubbing together three separate FIRs lodged against him in Assam and in the Uttar Pradesh cities of Lucknow and Varanasi for his alleged offensive remarks against the prime minister. After dictating the order, the CJI had apparently expressed his displeasure with the Congress leader's remarks and observed: "We have protected you (Khera), but there has to be some level of discourse."
Senior lawyer A M Singhvi, appearing for Khera, had said the words taken at their face value, as reflected in the FIRs, do not establish any offense punishable under the sections invoked. Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati, appearing for the state of Assam, had played the offending video in the court and claimed that Khera's statement on Modi was a "deliberate attempt to denigrate a constitutional functionary". Singhvi, however, had also told the apex court that Khera had already apologized for his remarks and that the offenses alleged against him in the cases did not require arrest.
