Congress leader Pawan Khera’s anticipatory bail hearing in the Telangana High Court, based on a complaint filed by Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, heated up on Thursday, with lawyers from both sides using phrases like “constitutional cowboy” and “international player” to present their arguments before the court.
Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera approached the High Court after the Assam Police filed a case against him. Khera had alleged that Sarma and his wife, Riniki Bhuyan Sharma, possessed illegal foreign passports and owned assets abroad.
Based on Riniki Bhuyan Sharma’s complaint, the police have filed charges of forgery, fraud, criminal intimidation, conspiracy, and defamation against the Congress leader.
Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, representing Pawan Khera, alleged that the FIR contained every possible allegation to pressure a political rival. He argued that even if the Congress leader’s statements are proven false, the case is one of defamation and there is no reason to arrest him.
He said the politician was willing to cooperate. Khera is not absconding. He is willing to cooperate. He has come to this court because he was in Hyderabad with his wife when he learned about the FIR.
Attacking the Assam government’s action, Singhvi argued that if you start arresting people for this, it will become jungle raj.
He further said that we do not live in an era of constitutional arbitrariness, who use their powers to send 100 policemen from Assam for a case that is essentially a defamation complaint.
Stringing back against Singhvi’s arguments, Assam’s Advocate General Devajit Saikia argued that his state is not a “banana republic.” He said that Khera should have approached the court in Assam or Delhi (where the Congress leader lives) instead of going to the Telangana High Court.
Describing Khera as an “international player,” Saikia said he had left the capital and reached Hyderabad before the Assam Police arrived at his home. He claimed that foreign currency had been seized from Khera’s Delhi home and that 19 cases were pending against him across the country. Claiming that Khera was a flight risk, the lawyer argued that he was not entitled to protection from any legal action.
After hearing both sides, the Telangana High Court reserved its decision for Friday. The decision was delivered today.
The Telangana High Court granted Congress leader Pawan Khera a week’s interim relief. Justice K. Sujana’s bench directed Khera to file a bail application before the appropriate forum. Khera’s lawyer requested more time. Justice Sujana remarked that Khera was no ordinary person. Justice Sujana said, “He filed the petition in three days, the case was heard, and an order was also given. He can approach the appropriate forum within a week.” The court had initially questioned why the petition was filed in Telangana if the documents listed Delhi as the address.
During the hearing, the court observed that the documents submitted by the petitioner listed his wife Neelima’s address as Delhi. The court questioned, “If the permanent address is in Delhi, what is the basis for filing the petition in the Telangana High Court?”
Regarding this, the court sought clarity on jurisdiction. The court directed that the latest Aadhaar card of Kota Neelima (Khera’s wife) be presented at the next hearing to clarify her current residence and whether the petition falls within the jurisdiction of this court.
Congress leader Pawan Khera had filed a petition for anticipatory bail in the Telangana High Court on Wednesday. The case was filed against him by the Assam government, in which he had made allegations against Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma’s wife.
Khera had requested the court to grant him bail in case of his arrest. On April 5, the Congress leader had alleged that Himanta’s wife, Rinki Bhuyan Sharma, possessed multiple passports and foreign assets.
In his petition, Khera has made the DCP of the Guwahati Crime Branch Police Station and the Telangana government as respondents. The case has been registered against Khera at the Guwahati Crime Branch Police Station under several sections of the BNS, including sections 175, 35, and 318.