SC to Hear Assam Govt’s Plea Against Relief Granted to Pawan Khera

NEW DELHI:
The Supreme Court is slated to hear on Wednesday the Assam government’s plea challenging the interim relief granted by the Telangana High Court to Congress leader Pawan Khera in the criminal case registered over his alleged defamatory remarks against Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma’s wife, Riniki Bhuyan Sarma.

As per the causelist published on the apex court’s official website, the matter is listed before a Bench of Justices J.K. Maheshwari and Atul S. Chandurkar on April 15.

The Assam government has moved the top court by filing a Special Leave Petition (SLP) assailing the Telangana High Court’s April 10 order granting transit anticipatory bail to Khera for one week.

The Telangana High Court had granted interim protection to Khera to enable him to approach the competent court for regular bail in connection with the FIR lodged by Assam Police.

Granting relief, a single-judge Bench of Justice K. Sujana had directed that the Congress leader be released on anticipatory bail for one week in the event of arrest. Khera had approached the Telangana High Court seeking transit anticipatory bail after Assam Police registered a case against him for allegedly making defamatory and malicious allegations against Riniki Bhuyan Sarma.

During the hearing before the Telangana High Court, senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for Khera, had argued that the FIR was a product of political vendetta and that the Congress leader was being targeted for questioning the Assam Chief Minister and his family.

He had contended that the allegations, even if assumed to be incorrect, would at best constitute defamation and not warrant arrest.

Opposing the plea, Assam Advocate General Devajit Saikia had questioned the maintainability of the petition before the Telangana High Court, arguing that Khera, being a resident of Delhi, had no compelling reason to seek relief outside Assam.

The Assam Police have booked Khera under multiple provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including charges of defamation, forgery and criminal conspiracy, following his allegations that Riniki Bhuyan Sarma possessed multiple foreign passports, undeclared luxury properties in Dubai, and shell companies in the United States.

The controversy had triggered a sharp political confrontation between the BJP and Congress ahead of the Assam Assembly elections, with the Congress rallying behind Khera and accusing the Himanta Biswa Sarma-led government of using the police machinery to silence political opponents.

Senior Congress leaders had defended Khera and maintained that instead of initiating criminal action, the Assam Chief Minister and his family should respond to the allegations levelled against them.