SC stays T'gana HC order granting transit pre-arrest bail to Khera

NEW DELHI: In a setback to Congress's Pawan Khera, Supreme Court on Wednesday stayed the Telangana high court order granting him transit anticipatory bail, making him vulnerable to arrest by Assam police which have been looking for him in a case registered on a complaint by Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma's wife.

Expressing surprise at Telangana HC entertaining Khera's plea relating to an FIR filed in Assam, a bench of Justices J K Maheshwari and Atul S Chandukar stayed the April 10 order which gave him one week's time to move the relevant court in Assam. The bench, however, clarified that Khera could file a plea for anticipatory bail before a jurisdictional court, which means he has to move a court in Assam for protection.




The bench passed an ex-parte order against Khera after solicitor general Tushar Mehta, appearing for the state, sought immediate stay on the HC order. The SG said the Congress functionary indulged in "forum-choosing" by filing a case before Telangana HC which had no jurisdiction. He said Khera, in his petition in the HC, did not mention why he could not go to Assam.

SG Mehta said Khera invoked the jurisdiction of Telangana HC on the ground that his wife lived there but told the bench that her Aadhaar card contained a Delhi address. He said that having immovable property in a state was not enough to invoke jurisdiction in that state and it was abuse of the process of law.

"If this is the case, a person can buy property across the country, and seek anticipatory bail from the place he chooses. This is forum-shopping, if not forum-choosing," SG Mehta said.

The SG told the bench that the front of the Aadhaar card (filed in the HC) was in the name of respondent No.1 (Khera), though the back indicated the address of his wife. "Thus, by producing a fabricated document, only to make out the jurisdiction of Telangana HC, the petition was filed for bail," he added.

After a brief hearing, the bench stayed the HC order and issued notice to Khera seeking his response on the appeal filed by Assam govt. "In the meantime, operation of the impugned order shall remain stayed. We make it clear that in case the respondent applies for anticipatory bail before the court having jurisdiction in Assam and while deciding such application, the order passed today by this court staying order of transit bail would not have any adverse inference to the court," the bench said and posted the case on May 13.

Earlier, granting relief to Khera, HC had rejected Assam govt's argument on maintainability of bail petition.
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