Adhir moves plea for anticipatory bail

Behrampore: A couple of days after Adhir Chowdhury put up a brave front and refused to surrender or pray for anticipatory bail, the maverick Congress leader on Tuesday filed a bail plea at Behrampore district sessions judge court. He had earlier claimed that the police had framed him with false charges.
The court will take up Adhir's plea for hearing on October 29, weeks before the Congress-led Behrampore Municipality goes to polls on November 22.
Explaining his change in stance, the junior railway minister told TOI: "I was only an MP earlier but now I am a member of the Union ministry, so I can't take my decision on my own. I discussed with the party high command and Rahul Gandhi suggested that I apply for an anticipatory bail."
However, he insisted that he was framed with false charges. "I stand by what I had said earlier. There have been conspiracies against me since I've been framed in two cases in last six months," he said. Chowdhury was referring to his alleged role in the vandalism of DM's bunglow and he trying to influence voters during the rural polls in Shaktipur.
"We have filed an anticipatory bail prayer and the hearing date will be fixed on Thursday," said Chowdhury's counsel Kanchanlal Mukherjee.
Political observers think Chowdhury's advisors convinced him that if he's arrested, his rival may claim the district Congress president's post and there may be efforts to snatch the railway ministry from him.