Gujarat HC grants jailed AAP MLA one-day bail to visit ailing stepbrother

Posted on by Vividh Bharathi

Gandhinagar, Oct 16 (IANS) The Gujarat High Court on Friday granted one-day temporary bail to jailed Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA Chaitar Vasava to visit his stepbrother, who is in critical condition after allegedly consuming poison, after his lawyer sought relief on medical and family grounds.

Shantilal Vasava, 35, the stepbrother of the Dediapada Scheduled Tribe (ST) legislator, allegedly consumed poison at his residence in Songadh in Tapi district on October 12.

He was subsequently admitted to a hospital in Surat, where he is undergoing treatment for organophosphorus (OP) poisoning.

Parul Vadgama, Medical Superintendent In-charge of the New Civil Hospital in Surat, said Shantilal’s condition is critical.

A relative claimed that Shantilal was distressed after Chaitar Vasava was sentenced in an assault and extortion case.

The MLA had initially approached the High Court seeking 30 days’ bail to appear for the Semester-I Master of Social Work examination conducted by Balhans College of Social Work in Bharuch district.

However, when the matter came up for hearing on Friday, his lawyer said he was not pressing that request and instead sought temporary release so that the legislator could look after his stepbrother.

The court granted one-day temporary bail for the hospital visit.

The case for which Vasava is serving his sentence dates back to October 30, 2023, when he allegedly summoned forest department officials to his residence in Dediapada after they had directed villagers to clear encroachments on forest land.

According to the police complaint registered on November 2, 2023, the officials were allegedly abused and assaulted, and a demand was made for compensation to be paid to villagers affected by the removal of the encroachments.

The prosecution also alleged that Vasava fired a round in the air. These allegations formed part of the criminal case against him.

A court in Rajpipla of Narmada district sentenced Vasava, his wife Shakuntala and seven others to seven years’ imprisonment in June 2026.

The court also imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 on the MLA, according to reports.

Vasava was subsequently lodged in Vadodara Central Jail.

In September, the High Court granted him seven days’ temporary bail to attend a session of the Legislative Assembly, subject to conditions that included restrictions on leaving Gandhinagar, addressing public gatherings and speaking to the media.

–IANS

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