Kolhapur court orders journalist Prashant Koratkar’s remand in police custody till March 28

KOLHAPUR: A sessions court in Kolhapur on Tuesday ordered Nagpur journalist Prashant Koratkar’s remand in police custody till March 28 in the case of making a threat call to historian Indrajit Sawant and alleged objectionable remarks against Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj that tended to promote enmity between two communities.
Koratkar was formally arrested after being brought to the Juna Rajwada police station early Tuesday morning following his detention on Monday afternoon from the Mancherial railway station in Telangana. He was produced before the sessions court amid tight security as there were concerns about ‘Shivpremis’ attacking him on the court premises.
The police sought Koratkar’s custodial remand for seven days on the grounds that the offence was of serious nature and that they needed to collect his voice samples and also investigate destruction of evidence as he erased all data in his cell phone before his wife surrendered the same to the police. The prosecutor submitted that the police wanted to investigate the places Koratkar visited while on the run and who all helped him.
On the other hand, Koratkar’s lawyer argued that there was no need for the arrest of his client and that the police made the arrest under pressure of a media trial. He questioned what prevented the police from collecting Koratkar’s voice samples during the time when he was granted interim protection from arrest. The lawyer also cited SC rulings to drive home the argument that the arrest was needless.