Jignesh Mevani’s re-arrest: Policewoman alleges molestation, assault by Gujarat MLA

Just a few hours after Gujarat’s Independent MLA Jignesh Mevani was granted bail by a court in Assam, he got arrested by the police once again in relation to a second case, which was recently filed. According to PTI, the second case has been booked under the charges of molestation and assault.

According to media reports, the second case which has been filed against Mevani prompted police to re-arrest him just 13 hours after his bail. He was arrested on charges of "assaulting and outraging" the modesty of a woman police officer four days ago.

Mevani, an MLA supported by Congress, was booked under IPC sections related to voluntarily causing hurt, assault, or criminal force to deter a public servant from discharge of his or her duty after a policewoman filed a complaint against him, police said, according to news agency PTI.

The incident under which the report has been filed against Mevani occurred when a women police officer was escorting him from Guwahati airport to Kokrajhar along with Additional Superintendent of Police Surjeet Singh Panesar and another police officer in a government vehicle on April 21, according to the FIR registered on the same day in Barpeta Road police station.

The policewoman, in the FIR, alleged that Mevani used abusive words against her inside the vehicle. When she “asked him to behave”, the Gujarat MLA acted in an agitated way and “used more slang words, tried to frighten me and pushed me on my seat with force. He thus assaulted me during the execution of my duty as a public servant and outraged my modesty by touching me inappropriately while pushing".

Meanwhile, Mevani has completely denied these allegations, saying that this is a "conspiracy on the part of the BJP and the RSS to tarnish my image and systematically destroy me". Mevani’s lawyer Angshuman Bora also said that these allegations were “atrocious.”

It must be noted that Jignesh Mevani was earlier arrested from Gujarat over a complaint filed by a BJP leader from Assam. Mevani was arrested for posting a tweet on Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

(With PTI inputs)

READ | Gujarat MLA Jignesh Mevani granted bail, rearrested by Assam Police in another case