New Delhi, September 15 (H.S.): The Patiala House Court in Delhi has granted interim bail to Swatantra Bhardwaj, who was accused of assaulting and injuring the father of a protester during a demonstration at Jantar Mantar. Additional Sessions Judge Saurabh Pratap Singh granted Bhardwaj three weeks of interim bail.

The court had reserved its order on September 14. During the hearing, advocate Umesh Sharma, appearing for Swatantra Bhardwaj, argued that his client had been falsely implicated for political reasons. Sharma submitted that Bhardwaj was initially arrested under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, but an FIR was subsequently registered against him under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

On September 7, the court had remanded Swatantra Bhardwaj to 14 days of judicial custody. On September 6, the court had initially remanded him to judicial custody until September 7. Prior to that, he had been placed in one-day police custody. Bhardwaj was arrested from Bulandshahr, Uttar Pradesh, on September 4.

Bhardwaj was arrested after he admitted during a podcast that he had assaulted the father of a female student protester on the head. Following the podcast, workers and supporters of the Cockroach Janta Party and some political parties staged a protest outside the Parliament Street Police Station.

The protesters demanded that an FIR be registered against Bhardwaj, arguing that he had himself admitted to the alleged assault during the podcast. An FIR was subsequently registered against him under provisions of the POCSO Act and the SC/ST Act.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar