The Supreme Court’s order in Pawan Khera v. State of Assam is not just another anticipatory bail order it is a quiet but firm reminder that the criminal process cannot be allowed to become a vehicle of political rivalry. The Chief Minister’s own words, the Court found, were a part of the record it could not ignore.
The Supreme Court granted anticipatory bail to Congress leader Pawan Khera in the Assam Police case, observing that the allegations and counter-allegations currently appear politically motivated and influenced by rivalry, with their veracity to be tested during trial.
Congress leader Pawan Khera has moved the Supreme Court challenging the Gauhati High Court’s refusal to grant him anticipatory bail in a criminal case filed by Assam Police. The case concerns his alleged remarks about Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma’s wife.
Gauhati High Court rejected Pawan Khera’s anticipatory bail, saying the case involves serious charges beyond defamation. The court also stressed the need for custodial interrogation to verify documents and uncover the full conspiracy.
Today, On 24th April, The Gauhati High Court refused anticipatory bail to Congress leader Pawan Khera in an Assam Police FIR after he claimed that Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma’s wife Riniki Bhuyan held multiple foreign passports along with undisclosed assets abroad.
The Gauhati High Court reserved its order on Congress leader Pawan Khera’s anticipatory bail plea in a case linked to an FIR filed by Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma’s wife, Riniki Bhuyan Sharma over multiple passport allegations.
Pawan Khera filed anticipatory bail plea before Gauhati High Court in case by Assam Police Crime Branch. Petition has been registered, awaiting listing before Bench for hearing in Guwahati.
The Supreme Court denied extension of Pawan Khera’s transit bail and directed him to approach the Gauhati High Court. The Court stressed that his anticipatory bail plea must be decided independently on merits in Assam.
The Gauhati High Court designated a fast-track sessions court for daily hearings in the Zubeen Garg death case, with Judge Sharmila Bhuyan presiding, as Himanta Biswa Sarma called it a significant justice milestone.
Ajai Lamba, former Chief Justice of the Gauhati High Court, resigned as chairperson of the three-member Commission of Inquiry set up by the Union Home Ministry in 2023 to probe Manipur’s ethnic violence. He will be replaced by former Supreme Court judge Balbir Singh Chauhan, leading the Leh violence inquiry.
