Court frames charges against Jharkhand CM, minister and speaker

RANCHI: No one is above law! This was proved here on Thursday when court of sub divisional judicial magistrate (SDJM) in Ranchi framed charges against the top law makers of state which included chief minister Raghubar Das, parliamentary affairs minister Saryu Rai, speaker Dinesh Oraon and five others of the BJP. All together eight people have been accused of rioting (section 147IPC)), unlawful assembly (section 149IPC), wrongful restrain (341IPC), criminal trespass (447IPC) and mischief causing damage (427IPC) in connection with a political agitation and dharna at office of national highway authority of India (NHAI), Ranchi in November 2013.
Court of Rajesh Kumar Singh, SDJM and judicial magistrate, CBI read out the charges which was subsequently denied by the accused. BJP spokesperson Sanjay Jaiswal who is one among the eight accused said that the incident relates to party programme of dharna at NHAI office in Ashoknagar. “BJP workers in November, 2013, led by erstwhile MLA, Raghubar Das and former Jamshedpur MLA (at that time) Saryu Rai protested before the NHAI office demanding repair of Ranchi-Jamshedpur National Highway-33 and during the protest a case of vandalism was registered against us at the local Argora police station,” he said.
Among other accused former BJP MLA Dukha Bhagat, state leader Sanjay Seth, present Dhanbad Mayor Chandrashekhar Agarwal and BJP Mahanagar president Satyanarayan Singh were also present in the court.
Advocate Ran Vijay Singh prayed on behalf of the BJP leaders. He said that the charges are of pity offence and the term of sentence under none of the section exceeds two years. “My clients have denied the charges and now statement of witnesses would be recorded from the next date of hearing which has been fixed for December 19 by the court,” he said.
The case against BJP leaders was filed by project director, NHAI Awadhesh Kumar, who lodged FIR against Das and seven prominent BJP leaders along with over one hundred party workers.