Hardik gets bail in 2 cases, HC asks him to stay out of Guj for 6 months

However, Hardik cannot come out of jail for now as another case of mob violence at an MLA’s office is pending against him in Visnagar town of Mehsana district, in which his bail plea is scheduled to be heard on July 11.

Justice AJ Desai granted bail to Hardik with strict conditions, one of them being that he will have to stay outside Gujarat for the next six months and directed his lawyer to give a fresh written undertaking on his client's behalf that he would not indulge in any activities that would lead to law and order problem. The judge also listed other conditions as well in the written order.

The 22-year-old Patel quota stir spearhead has been behind bars since October 2015 in sedition cases that were filed against him in Ahmedabad and Surat.

During the earlier hearing of the case, government pleader Mitesh Amin had opposed Hardik's plea, saying that the state government was apprehensive that if he was let off on bail, he might repeat the offence and his presence outside the jail might create law and order problems in the state.

Hardik's lawyer Zubin Bharda had told the court that his client was ready to stay out of the state for six months if the court granted bail to him in order to remove the apprehensions expressed by the state pleader.

During earlier hearings, the government had declined to accept Hardik's offer of a written undertaking for bail, in which he had stated that he would refrain from activities that might affect the law and order situation but added he would “continue to agitate for grievances of the Patidar community in a peaceful and democratic manner.” 

Hardik had approached the High Court for bail in the sedition cases, after the lower courts in Surat and Ahmedabad (where there are separate sedition cases against Hardik) refused to grant bail.

Reacting to the HC order on Friday, Hardik said he had faith in the judiciary and added that the future course of the agitation would be decided after he walked out of jail.

Talking to reporters outside the Lajpore jail in Surat, where he was being taken after the court hearing, Hardik said: “In a democracy, the judiciary is the supreme. As far as the future agitation is concerned, we will decide on further strategy after coming out of jail.” 

Patel community members in many parts of the state, including Hardik's family members in Viramgam town, Ahmedabad, welcomed the High Court’s decision by bursting crackers and distributing sweets. 

Hardik, who heads the Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS), and his three associates are facing charges under Sections 124(A) (sedition), 121 (A) (conspiracy to wage war against government) and 120 (B) (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). They are accused of inciting violence to put pressure on the government to accept the demand of OBC reservation for Patels.

Hardik’s rally on reservation held in Ahmedabad on August 25 last year had sparked violence, in which, 10 people, including one policeman, were killed and public property and vehicles worth crores of rupees were damaged across Gujarat.

Meanwhile, the BJP-led state government said Hardik got bail as it did not oppose his conditional bail in the court. Congress, however, said that Hardik’s bail was a “setback” to the government, which tried to “suppress the voice of the state’s youths.” 

The high court had granted bail to Hardik’s core group members Chirag Patel, Ketan Patel and Dinesh Bambhania a couple of months ago, after they submitted a written undertaking, stating that they would not indulge in any activity that may cause law and order problem.

Government spokesperson Nitin Patel said Hardik and others got a conditional bail earlier as the government decided not to oppose them.

“Hardik’s three friends were granted bail after government agreed to their written undertaking. Government had said it has no problem with conditional bail to Hardik and government pleader had conveyed this to the court by not opposing conditional bail. Hardik got bail in two sedition cases, but in Visnagar case he is yet to get bail. I believe the court will consider the matter worth granting him bail,” Patel said.