GUWAHATI:
Congress legislator of Gujarat Jignesh Mevani was rearrested on April 25 for assaulting a woman police sub-inspector (SI) while being brought to Kokrajhar from Lokapriya Gopinath Bordoloi International (LGBI) Airport in Guwahati on April 21.
A case No 81/22 under Section 294/323/353/354 of IPC was registered against Mevani based on a complaint lodged by SI Debika Brahma of Kokrajhar Police Station at the Barpeta Road Police Station.
In her complaint filed on April 21, the woman SI said, “Today, while I was escorting the accused Jignesh Mevani from LGBI airport to Kokrajhar along with Kokrajhar additional SP Surjit Singh Panesar and TSI Mouti Basumatary in a government vehicle, on the way just after crossing the Simaluguri point of Barpeta district at around 1.30 pm, the arrested person hurled expletives at me. When I asked him to behave properly, he got agitated and used more cuss words.”
Brahma further alleged that the Congress leader also pointed finger at her and tried to frighten and pushed her with force. “He thus assaulted me during the execution of my legal duty of being a public servant and outraged my modesty by touching me inappropriately while pushing me. After reaching Kokrajhar I immediately informed my senior officials,” she said in the complaint.
“I, therefore, request you to register a case against the accused person, Jignesh Mevani, under the appropriate section of the law and take action,” she added.
Notable, the Dalit leader was rearrested hours after the chief judicial magistrate of Kokrajhar granted him bail six days after he was arrested by Assam police in connection with an “objectionable” tweet against Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the night of April 20.
Earlier on the night of April 24, Mevani was remanded to one-day jail custody by the court after the expiry of his three-day police custody.
“Mevani was picked up by a police team from Kokrajhar district jail and brought to Barpeta Road Police Station,” said Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) general secretary Apurba Kumar Bhattacharyya.