Kolkata: Calcutta High Court on Thursday verbally observed that Congress’s Nandigram candidate Milan Pradhan may be granted interim bail to fight the Oct 6 bypoll outside custody. Another HC bench pulled up the state for arresting Pradhan in a 19-year-old case without informing the court and granted him protection from coercive action till Oct 12. The state challenged the order.There are 11 cases against Pradhan. He has been arrested in five, for which he moved a bail petition before Justice Tirthankar Ghosh. In six other matters, he had moved before Justice Saugata Bhattacharyya seeking protection.The developments came a day after Pradhan was arrested in a Khejuri PS case on Wednesday and remanded in judicial custody. His lawyer called it a “blatant violation” of the HC’s order.Justice Bhattacharyya said the Sept 22 order — “that no other matters are pending” — was passed as the state submitted that five cases were closed and in a sixth case Pradhan was “not warranted”.“It was not brought to the notice of the court,” Justice Bhattacharyya told additional advocate general (AAG) Rajdeep Mazumder. “On Sept 22, HC passed an order… based on submissions by none other than the AAG. Now, to show respect to the court, if any other cases are pending like what has surfaced, don’t take any steps.”The court directed cops not to take any steps against Pradhan in the Khejuri PS case till Oct 12 and said that he “will not be treated as an arrest” in the case.Opposing this, the AAG submitted that a production warrant was issued on Sept 19. The 2007 case was that of murder, he said, adding that it was revived after an order for the same in a 2021 PIL.“Show me that the petitioner was aware of this Sept 19 order (issuing warrant of production) and that it was served before Sept 22,” Justice Bhattacharyya asked. On not receiving adequate documents supporting the same, the judge ordered protection for Pradhan.“It is contended that production warrant was subsisting but court does not find any document wherefrom it can be concluded that production warrant in connection with Khejuri police station (July 31, 2007) was served upon petitioner at the material point of time. Therefore, contention of state respondents is negated at this stage,” Justice Bhattacharyya held.The single judge’s order was challenged by the state before a division bench of Chief Justice Ravindra Vithalrao Ghuge. The matter is likely to be heard on Friday. On the same day, Justice Ghosh is likely to deliver verdict on bail matters moved by Pradhan in five cases.
