Rohtak court issues bailable warrants against Ramdev

ROHTAK: A Rohtak court on Friday issued a bailable warrant against yoga guru Ramdev in a case over his controversial ‘beheading’ remark made in the month of April, 2016.

The order follows Ramdev’s failure to appear before the court despite being summoned on April 29. Ramdev was summoned under Section 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace) and 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for his remark that he can “behead lakhs of people refusing to chant Bharat Mata Ki Jai if he weren’t bound by the law”.

Ramdev was addressing a gathering in Rohtak when he allegedly made the remark. The event was a part of an RSS-backed Sadbhawana Sammelan organised in Rohtak during to promote “peace” in a city that witnessed unprecedented violence during the Jat stir for reservation. He was allegedly responding to comment made by Asaduddin Owaisi who said he will not chant Bharat Mata Ki

Jai “even if a knife is put to his throat”.

A day after Ramdev’s remark, former home minister and senior Congress leader Subhash Batra had lodged a complaint with the police. Batra later moved court after the police did not register a case. On March 2, the court had summoned Ramdev to appear before it on April 29.

On Thursday, court of additional chief justice magistrate Harish Goyal directed Ramdev to furnish ₹ 1 lakh personal surety during execution of the warrant and appear before the court on June 14.