The Supreme Court granted bail to former Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) from Rajasthan and Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) leader Girraj Singh Malinga in a 2022 case involving allegations that he assaulted an assistant engineer of State’s electricity department. Malinga had approached the top court for relief after the Rajasthan High Court in July this year cancelled the bail granted to him earlier in 2022.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court of India on friday (Dec 13) granted bail to former Rajasthan Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Girraj Singh Malinga. This decision comes in connection with a 2022 case involving allegations that Malinga assaulted an assistant engineer from the state’s electricity department.
Malinga approached the apex court for relief after the Rajasthan High Court, in July 2023, canceled the bail previously granted to him in 2022. On December 13, a Bench of Justices MM Sundresh and Aravind Kumar overturned the High Court’s order and reinstated the bail granted to Malinga.
The Bench noted that Malinga had surrendered to the authorities following the Supreme Court’s earlier directives.
“Considering the above, we are inclined to set aside the impugned order, especially when the appellant has surrendered himself, pursuant to the observation made by us on the earlier occasion. Thus, taking into consideration the facts and circumstances of the case, we are inclined to set aside the impugned order,”
-the Bench remarked.
The Court also observed that the High Court’s decision to cancel the bail had come two years after it was initially granted. The Supreme Court proceeded to restore the bail with specific instructions.
“The appellant shall be released forthwith on the very same terms and conditions based on which he was granted bail,”
-the Court added.
The allegations against Malinga originated from a First Information Report (FIR) filed by a Dalit engineer in March 2022. The engineer claimed that Malinga, then a Congress MLA, entered his office accompanied by several individuals, assaulted him, and used casteist slurs.
The conflict reportedly arose following the disconnection of electricity and the removal of transformers from a village.
Malinga was charged under Section 307 (attempt to murder) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), along with other provisions, including Sections 3(1)(r), 3(1)(s), and 3(2)(va) of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.
The incident significantly impacted Malinga’s political trajectory. The Congress party denied him a ticket for the 2023 State Assembly elections, leading him to join the BJP.
Following his arrest, Malinga was granted bail by the Rajasthan High Court on May 17, 2022. However, the complainant later approached the High Court seeking the cancellation of this bail. The complainant cited concerns over Malinga’s influence and conduct after his release, alleging that he organized a roadshow and delivered intimidatory speeches.
Additionally, the complainant argued that Malinga had a history of criminal cases, which he had concealed while securing bail.
On July 5, 2023, the High Court canceled Malinga’s bail and ordered him to surrender. Malinga subsequently moved the Supreme Court, which stayed the High Court’s order.
However, the Supreme Court, on November 8, clarified that it would not proceed with the case unless Malinga surrendered to the authorities. After complying with this directive, the Court granted him bail on December 13.
Senior Advocate Mukul Rohtagi, along with advocates Ajit Sharma, Aditya Vikram Singh, Sameer Rohtagi, Kanchan Kumar, Akshat Sharma, Amrit Pradhan, Yuvarajsing Solnki, Aditya Mishra, Ravi Pachori, Anshuman Singh, Mishra Aditya, and Priyansh Jain, represented Malinga.
The State of Rajasthan was represented by Additional Advocate General Shiv Mangal Sharma and advocates Amogh Bansal and Nidhi Jaswal. The complainant’s legal team included advocates Mehmood Pracha, Jasdeep Singh Dhillon, Malti, Amanat Kaur Chahal, Anirudh Jamwal, Aditya Jain, and Desam Sudhakara Reddy.
CASE TITLE:
Girraj Singh Malinga v. State of Rajasthan.
Click Here to Read Previous Reports on Ayodhya Verdict
FOLLOW US ON YOUTUBE FOR MORE LEGAL UPDATES
