The Madras High Court on Friday granted bail to DMK’s Coimbatore South district secretary S. ‘Thendral’ Selvaraj, his personal assistant C. Keerthi Anand and another accused A. Durai in a case booked against them for alleged unlawful assembly, violence perpetrated against the police to rescue an accused in custody and damaging a police vehicle.
Justice M. Nirmal Kumar let them out on bail on condition that they must appear before the investigating officer daily for 15 days from the date of release. In the meantime, Justice N. Anan Venkatesh heard the anticipatory bail petitions filed by 43 other accused in the same case and granted time till June 22 for the prosecution to file its counter.
Appearing on behalf of the three bail petitioners, senior counsel N.R. Elango contended that a false case had been booked against them purely due to political animosity. He pointed out that the police had initially filed a case against the same accused for allegedly making derogatory statements against Municipal Administration Minister S.P. Velumani.
Subsequently, it was their claim that a huge gang of DMK men waylaid the police when they had picked up the second bail petitioner Keerthi Anand for interrogation, attacked the vehicles, prevented the police from performing their duty and rescued him from their custody. The senior counsel contended that the entire episode was fiction.
He said it was a false case foisted at the instance of the ruling party and sought bail for the accused citing the threat of COVID-19.
