Pawan Khera moves SC against Gauhati HC order in defamation case

Congress leader Pawan Khera approached the Supreme Court against a Gauhati High Court order that rejected his anticipatory bail plea. The case was filed by Assam CM's wife, Riniki Bhuyan Sarma, over defamation and forgery allegations.

Congress leader Pawan Khera on Sunday moved the Supreme Court against an April 24 order of the Gauhati High Court rejecting his anticipatory bail plea in a defamation and forgery case registered against him by the Assam Police. An FIR was lodged against Khera by Riniki Bhuyan Sarma, the wife of Assam Chief Minister Himanta Kumar Sarma, following his recent claims at a press conference that she holds multiple foreign passports and undisclosed assets abroad.

Background of the Legal Battle

Earlier, the Supreme Court had also rejected Khera's plea seeking to extend the transit anticipatory bail, granted to him earlier by the Telangana High Court, on the ground of enabling him to approach any jurisdictional court in Assam to seek relief. However, the apex court had clarified its earlier order in which it had stayed the one-week transit anticipatory bail granted to Khera by the Telangana High Court to the extent that the same will not have any adverse influence on the jurisdictional court, which would decide over Khera's plea.

Initially, Khera approached the Telangana High Court seeking relief from being arrested by Assam police. The Telangana High Court had granted him one week's transit anticipatory bail to enable him to move any jurisdictional court in Assam without apprehension of arrest. Subsequently, the Assam police moved the Supreme Court, challenging the Telangana HC order granting Khera relief. The apex court stayed the Telangana HC order granting Khera one week's transit anticipatory bail on the Assam police's plea.

The apex court observed that Khera's move to approach the Telangana High Court seeking relief amounted to forum shopping and also cast doubts on his conduct before the High Court that Khera allegedly used a forged identity document to seek relief from the High Court. Later, the apex court granted Khera liberty to approach any jurisdictional court in Assam seeking relief and reassured him that any order passed by it or the Telangana High Court, erstwhile, wouldn't come in the way of a Court deciding the matter on the merits of the case afresh.

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