Gopalganj. Janata Dal United (JDU)’s powerful MLA Amarendra Kumar Pandey alias Pappu Pandey and his chartered accountant Rahul Tiwari got relief from ADJ-3 court on Tuesday from Kuchaikot assembly seat of Gopalganj district of Bihar.
The court has currently stayed the arrest of both of them during the hearing of the case related to the land dispute. Considering the seriousness of the case, senior Supreme Court advocate and Bar Council of India President Manan Kumar Mishra and senior High Court advocate Naresh Dixit appeared on behalf of the defence.
In the court, the defense side argued strongly that the entire matter does not fall in the category of criminal but civil dispute. Advocate Manan Mishra argued before the court that based on the facts of the case and the available documentary evidence, no concrete criminal case is confirmed.
He said that this is mainly a civil dispute related to land, which has been unnecessarily tried to be given a criminal colour.
After hearing the arguments of both the parties, the court, considering the nature of the case, issued an order to immediately stop the arrest of MLAs Amarendra Kumar Pandey and Rahul Tiwari.
The court has fixed May 7 for the next hearing. Till then the police will not be able to arrest both of them, which has given them time to prepare their legal strategy.
Advocate Manan Mishra said that after a long hearing in the court, the court has currently restrained the police and concerned authorities from arresting, confiscating property or taking any kind of coercive action.
He said that this is an order of ‘no coercive action’, under which the police cannot take any punitive action against the accused at present.
He also said that all the records related to the case will be presented before the court during the next hearing on May 7, after which the further legal process will be decided.
It is noteworthy that MLA Amarendra Kumar Pandey is accused of allegedly giving protection to land mafia and helping them in illegal activities related to land.
On this basis, legal action was initiated against him. After investigation, the police had obtained an arrest warrant from the court on the basis of evidence.
Along with MLA Pappu Pandey, the name of Satish Pandey has also come up in the case. It is alleged that both of them not only protected the land mafia but also actively cooperated in illegal land business. However, now they have got a big relief as the court has put a stay on the arrest.
After this decision, the discussion has also intensified in political circles, because Pappu Pandey is counted among the influential leaders of the area and the matter is believed to be directly related to the land mafia network.
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