Assault case: cops get till Nov 20 to find Court reserves order on Vasava’s pre-arrest bail plea

The court, which heard arguments in the MLA's anticipatory bail plea on Thursday, reserved its order stating that the police could arrest Chaitar "as per procedure" in the meanwhile, his advocate K J Tadvi told The Indian Express.

Chaitar Vasava was booked in two cases on December 8 and 10 for allegedly violating prohibitory orders and obstructing police on duty while endangering the lives of people respectively.

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The Narmada district sessions court on Friday reserved order in the anticipatory bail plea hearing of AAP’s Gujarat working president and Dediapada MLA Chaitar Vasava until November 20, granting time to the police to recover the weapon allegedly used by Chaitar to fire rounds in the air to intimidate forest officials in an alleged case of rioting, extortion and assault last month, the MLA’s lawyer said.

The court, which heard arguments in the MLA’s anticipatory bail plea on Thursday, reserved its order stating that the police could arrest Chaitar “as per procedure” in the meanwhile, his advocate K J Tadvi told The Indian Express.

“The court will hear the case next on November 20… The reason for reserving the order is that the police have cited the recovery of the weapon, a revolver, as the main ground for opposing the anticipatory bail plea. So, the court has said that the police can recover the weapon till November 20, after which the application will be decided,” Tadvi said.
Vani Dudhat, in charge Superintendent of Police of Narmada, said: “The regular bail application of the three persons arrested in the case was rejected on Friday… In case of the anticipatory bail plea of Chaitar Vasava, the police can arrest him until the court actually grants him bail…”

The court rejected the regular bail plea of Chaitar’s wife Shakuntala, who is admitted to Vadodara’s SSG hospital after complaining of cardiac issues in jail. The bail applications of Chaitar’s personal assistant Jitendra and farmer Ramesh Vasava, who had been remanded to two days in police custody on November 8, were also rejected on Friday.

Tadvi, meanwhile, said that Chaitar’s anticipatory bail plea was filed on the ground that the forest department had destroyed “the entire” standing crops of farmers of Bogaj and Jhadoli village although the alleged area of encroachment was “minor”.

“We have already produced documents of both farmers in the court, which clearly states that the land is owned by them… They had planted crops in an additional area of about half an acre, which the forest department had disputed as encroachment but when they came to remove the crops, they destroyed the entire farm, including the one acre land owned by the farmers… The MLA had only intervened to get them the compensation as per the provisions but it has been turned into an extortion case after much delay,” he added.

He alleged that the case is politically motivated. “The petition clearly states that the case has been filed as a conspiracy to prevent Chaitar from contesting the Lok Sabha polls.”

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On Thursday, the Narmada district police had opposed the anticipatory bail citing Chaitar’s “criminal past” with 12 FIR registered against him. The prosecution also informed the court that the police were yet to recover the weapon allegedly used by Chaitar to fire in the air to allegedly intimidate forest officials at his residence. The prosecution further told the court that the police need to “recover the money paid by forest officers for extortion”.

Aditi Raja

Aditi Raja is an Assistant Editor with The Indian Express, stationed in Vadodara, Gujarat, with over 20 years in the field. She has been reporting from the region of Central Gujarat and Narmada district for this newspaper since 2013, which establishes her as a highly Authoritative and Trustworthy source on regional politics, administration, and critical socio-economic and environmental issues. Expertise: Core Authority & Specialization: Her reporting is characterized by a comprehensive grasp of the complex factors shaping Central Gujarat, which comprises a vast tribal population, including: Politics and Administration: In-depth analysis of dynamics within factions of political parties and how it affects the affairs in the region, visits of national leaders making prominent statements, and government policy decisions impacting the population on ground. Crucial Regional Projects: She consistently reports on the socio-economic and political impact of infrastructure projects in the region, especially the Statue of Unity, the Sardar Sarovar Project on the Narmada River, the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail bullet train project as well as the National Highway infrastructure. Social Justice and Human Rights: Her reporting offers deep coverage of sensitive human-interest topics, including gender, crime, and tribal issues. Her reports cover legal proceedings from various district courts as well as the Gujarat High Court (e.g., the Bilkis Bano case remission, POCSO court orders, Public Interest Litigations), the plight of tribal communities, and broader social conflicts (e.g., Kheda flogging case). Local Impact & Disaster Reporting: Excels in documenting the immediate impact of events on communities, such as the political and civic fallout of the Vadodara floods, the subsequent public anger, and the long-delayed river redevelopment projects, Harni Boat Tragedy, Air India crash, bringing out a blend of stories from the investigations as well as human emotions. Special Interest Beat: She tracks incidents concerning Non-Resident Gujaratis (NRIs) including crime and legal battles abroad, issues of illegal immigration and deportations, as well as social events connecting the local Gujarati experience to the global diaspora. ... Read More

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