New Delhi : Social activist Teesta Setalvad has reached the Supreme Court on Saturday to reject the regular bail application from the Gujarat High Court and avoid immediate surrender. Social activist Teesta Setalvad is accused of allegedly tampering with evidence and training witnesses in cases related to the 2002 post-Godhra communal riots in Gujarat. The Gujarat High Court on Saturday rejected his regular bail application and ordered him to surrender immediately. The special bench of the Supreme Court will hear the matter on Monday or Tuesday.
Supreme Court will hear on Monday or Tuesday
The Supreme Court, while hearing the matter, said that the Supreme Court believes that Teesta Setalvad should have been given some time by the High Court to surrender. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Gujarat government, objected to Teesta Setalvad being given time to surrender. The Supreme Court said that on September 22, the Supreme Court had ordered to grant him interim bail. He is out on bail for nine months. We can consider the matter on Monday or Tuesday. The court said what is going to happen in the next 72 hours?
Gujarat High Court rejected the bail plea
Earlier, the Gujarat High Court on Saturday rejected the regular bail plea in the case of social activist Teesta Setalvad and ordered her to surrender immediately. The court remarked that Setalvad tried to destabilize the democratically elected government and tarnish the image of then Chief Minister and current Prime Minister Narendra Modi and send him to jail.
Teesta Setalvad’s release will send wrong message: High Court
Justice Nirjhar Desai’s court rejected Setalvad’s bail plea in a case related to fabricating evidence to implicate “innocent people” in the 2002 post-Godhra riots, saying her release would send a wrong message that everything is fine in a democratic country. There is generosity. The court ordered Teesta Setalvad, currently released on interim bail, to surrender immediately. After pronouncing the verdict, the court also refused to accept the request of Teesta Setalvad’s lawyer to stay the execution of the order for 30 days.
Teesta Setalvad was arrested on 25 June 2022
According to media reports, Teesta Setalvad was arrested along with former Gujarat Director General of Police RB Sreekumar and former IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt on June 25 last year in a case registered by the Crime Branch of Ahmedabad Police. Teesta Setalvad and others are accused of fabricating evidence to implicate ‘innocent people’ in the post-Godhra riots. He was granted interim bail by the Supreme Court on 2 September 2022.
Teesta Setalvad denied regular bail by Gujarat HC, ordered to surrender immediately
False affidavit filed to oust the government
In its judgement, the Gujarat High Court observed that prima facie Teesta Setalvad appears to have used her close aides and riot victims to ‘oust the then government in the Supreme Court and tarnish the image of the institution and the then Chief Minister (Modi)’. In filing a false and fabricated affidavit for the purpose. The court observed that if today a political party had given him the task of allegedly destabilizing the (then) government, tomorrow some outside force may use another person to do a similar task, which may harm the country. And can pose a threat to a particular state.
