ABVP activists remanded to 14 days judicial custody for protesting at TN CM's residence. Here's what happened

The ABVP said that the activists were first taken to a marriage hall and were kept there for a long time
Image for representation (Pic: PTI)
Image for representation (Pic: PTI)

Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad activists who were protesting in front of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin's residence, demanding quick redressal in the Lavanya suicide case, have been remanded to 14 days of judicial custody. Out of the 36 activists who participated in the protest, three have been released on account of being minors, while 33 others, including ABVP's National General Secretary Nidhi Tripathi, have been sent to Puzhal Jail (women) and Chengalpattu Jail (men). The ABVP will be filing for bail at the sessions court on February 15.

In an emergency hearing that concluded at 12:30 am on February 15, the Saidapet Magistrate Court ordered the students, who were booked under the non-bailable Section 353 of the IPC (assaulting public servant), to judicial remand. "They have been falsely charged with Section 353 IPC - assault on a public servant, which is a non-bailable offense. The protest was totally peaceful and not even a scratch was made by any student as evident in the videos," said Sidharth Yadav, National Media Convener and Delhi State Secretary of the ABVP. “This is unprecedented. The DMK government is acting upon a vendetta and targetting students. They have filed false charges on our karyakartas participating in the peaceful protest, sending student activists to jail who are raising their voice calls for action. We are prepared to fight the DMK government. We are protesting at all state headquarters today, including the Tamil Nadu house in Delhi, and we shall fight until justice is given to Lavanya and our karyakartas, including National General Secretary Nidhi Tripathi, are released,” he added.

The ABVP said that the activists were first taken to a marriage hall and were kept there for a long time. "At 11 pm, they were produced in front of the SDM (duty magistrate) where the arguments of the case began. The hearing went on till 12:30 am after which they were ordered judicial remand for 14 days," said an ABVP activist.

Nidhi Tripathi, National Secretary Muthuramalingam, State Secretary from Tamil Nadu Susila S, along with other student activists, were arrested in front of Stalin's residence in Chennai. A video that was circulated on social media platforms showed Nidhi and a few others being dragged from the protest site by the local police.

Related Stories

No stories found.
logo
EdexLive
www.edexlive.com