A magistrate court in Bandra, Mumbai, on Sunday remanded to 14-days judicial custody MP Navneet Rana and her husband, Ravi Rana, who is an MLA.
Navneet and Ravi had been arrested on Saturday on charges of “creating enmity between different groups”, after the couple cancelled their plan to recite the Hanuman Chalisa outside Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray's private residence.
Special public prosecutor Pradeep Gharat informed the court Section 124A of IPC (dealing with sedition) had been invoked against them. “Section 124A has been invoked against them for the hate and dislike that they spread against the government and the chief minister, thereby challenging the writ of the state machinery,” Gharat was quoted as saying by The Indian Express.
The court has scheduled their bail plea hearing for April 29. Mumbai Police has been asked to file its response to their bail plea on April 27.
Rizwan Merchant, advocate for the couple, was quoted by ANI as saying “For the first time, public prosecutor Pradip Gharat, obviously on instructions from the police department, argued that the case of the accused falls under 124A, which is sedition.”
He defended the couple's plan to chant Hanuman Chalisa. Merchant said “Hanuman Chalisa is nothing but praise of Lord Ram and Hanuman... the place where Hanuman Chalisa was supposed to be chanted was outside the house of people who claim to love Lord Ram; question of wanting to chant Hanuman Chalisa should not be affecting them at all.”
Given its religious nature, Merchant argued chanting of Hanuman Chalisa does not fall under purview of Section 153A of IPC, which refers to promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion and other factors.
“This entire case is bogus. They [Mumbai Police] have a very strong feeling that they are standing on loose ground. They know of the possibility of release on bail and have thus prepared a 2nd FIR,” Merchant was quoted as saying by ANI.
