The Bombay High Court on Thursday asked the trial court to defer the hearing in proceedings against independent MP from Amravati Navneet Rana and her MLA husband Ravi Rana till February 21 in a case related to the Hanuman Chalisa row. Justice PD Naik passed the order while hearing a petition filed by the couple seeking discharge in the case.
They approached the HC challenging the order of the sessions court rejecting their discharge plea. Their plea contends that the allegations against them were completely false and the FIR was registered belatedly, and the investigation was tainted. They have said that the police have claimed that they went to arrest the duo for a case of Hanuman Chalisa when the duo allegedly manhandled policemen and hence, the case under Section 353 of the IPC was registered.
However, the Khar police, in reality, had not registered any FIR when they came to arrest them, and they were not discharging their official duty at their residence, their plea contends. The couple have alleged that the chargesheet filed against them was doctored and due to political pressure.
