Delhi HC refuses interim protection to Hindu outfit chief

NEW DELHI : The Delhi High Court Friday refused to grant interim protection from arrest to president of Hindu Raksha Dal, Bhupinder Tomar, who is accused of raising communal slogans and inciting the youth to propagate against a particular religion at a rally at Jantar Mantar on August 8.

Justice Mukta Gupta issued notice on Tomar’s anticipatory bail application and sought status report from Delhi Police.

“Prima facie, there are all kinds of slogans and speeches being given. Let the status report be given,” said the judge as the matter was listed for further hearing on September 13.

Tomar’s counsel submitted that his client was granted interim protection by the trial court and that he was not the one who was shouting the objectionable slogans. “I want to know where you were (at the time of sloganeering). You were not present at all?..Let me have the complete status report,” the court responded.

Advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain, appearing for Tomar, also said that his client was not the organiser of the event who has already been granted bail in the case. Prosecution counsel Tarang Srivastava informed that he has already shared the video and the transcript of the allegedly objectionable sloganeering to the court. Earlier this month, a sessions court here had dismissed Bhupinder Tomar alias Pinki Chaudhary’s anticipatory bail application, saying, “we are not a Taliban State”.