The Calcutta High Court granted bail to Congress’s Nandigram candidate Milan Pradhan in one of six criminal cases. He was arrested on Sept 18 based on non-bailable warrants from 2007 for charges including murder and rioting ahead of the bypoll.
The Calcutta High Court on Thursday granted bail to the Congress candidate from Nandigram, Milan Pradhan, in connection with a criminal case registered at Khejuri Police Station, ruling that the police cannot arrest him in the matter. The court provided relief to Pradhan in connection with Case No 45 of Khejuri Police Station, in which local police had formally recorded his arrest a day earlier. The court ruled that the police cannot take him into custody in this specific matter, in which he had already been formally arrested. The case was reportedly added alongside five other existing cases registered against the Congress leader across the Nandigram and Khejuri police stations. While Pradhan secured bail in the Khejuri Police Station case on Wednesday, hearings pertaining to the remaining five cases remain pending before the Calcutta High Court.
Pradhan was arrested by Kolkata Police on the basis of four pending non-bailable warrants issued by courts in connection with cases registered in 2007, the police said on Saturday. According to the police, Pradhan, son of Prabir Pradhan alias Probodh Pradhan and a resident of Gangra village under Nandigram Police Station in Purba Medinipur district, was arrested on September 18 within the limits of Chandipur Police Station. The arrest was carried out during a special drive for execution of long-pending non-bailable warrants, as per the standing instructions of the Election Commission of India for elections and bye-elections, Kolkata Police said.
Details of Charges Against Pradhan
“The concerned cases against the arrested person involve serious offences including murder, attempt to murder, abduction with intent to murder, causing disappearance of evidence, house trespass, rioting with arms and deadly weapons,” the police said in a press release.
The cases pending against Pradhan include the Nandigram Police Station case dated April 30, 2007, registered under sections 147, 148, 149, 448, 302 and 506 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 27 of the Arms Act. Another case, Nandigram PS case dated November 15, 2007, was registered under sections 147, 148, 149, 326, 364, 302 and 201 of the IPC. The police also mentioned Nandigram PS case dated November 8, 2007, registered under sections 147, 148, 149, 324, 307 and 302 of the IPC along with Sections 25/27 of the Arms Act, and Khejuri PS Case No. 44/07 dated July 30, 2007, registered under Sections 148 and 149 of the IPC and Sections 25/35 of the Arms Act.
Police Justify Arrest
“The arrested person had been absconding and evading the due process of law for nineteen years since 2007 and stands chargesheeted in the concerned cases as an absconder,” Kolkata Police said. The police further stated that repeated attempts to execute the warrants had failed in the past, following which Non-Execution Reports (NERs) were submitted before the concerned courts from time to time.
“Execution of long-pending non-bailable warrants is a standing instruction of the Election Commission of India in respect of all elections/bye-elections. The arrest of Pradhan is a lawful step towards compliance with the same during the course of an ongoing special drive,” the police added.
Political Reactions to the Arrest
The arrest comes ahead of the bye-election to the 210-Nandigram Assembly constituency, where Pradhan is contesting as a Congress candidate. The Congress has also questioned why action was taken against Pradhan at this stage despite the cases dating back to 2007.
West Bengal Congress president Subhankar Sarkar said the party was initially unclear about the reason for the arrest and Pradhan’s whereabouts. Congress leaders have alleged political motivation behind the action.
The BJP has rejected the allegations of political interference and maintained that police action was in accordance with law. A police officer cited in reports said the arrest was related to a pending warrant in a 2007 murder case and that such warrants are executed irrespective of elections.
The Nandigram Assembly bypoll is scheduled for October 6, with counting of votes set for October 9. (ANI)
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