The Supreme Court on Friday declined to grant interim protection from coercive action to senior Congress leader Pawan Khera in a criminal case registered against him in Assam. The bench, led by Justices J.K. Maheshwari and Atul S. Chandurkar, directed Khera to approach a court of competent jurisdiction in Assam to seek anticipatory bail regarding allegations he made against the family of Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.
The legal dispute stems from a press conference held by Pawan Khera on April 5. During the event, Khera alleged that Riniki Bhuyan Sharma, the wife of Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma, possessed multiple passports and undeclared foreign properties. Khera further claimed these assets were omitted from the Chief Minister’s election affidavit for the April 9 Assembly polls. These allegations were immediately dismissed as “false and fabricated” by both the Chief Minister and his wife.
Following these remarks, a case was registered at the Guwahati Crime Branch police station. Khera was booked under several sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including Section 175 (false statement in connection with an election), Section 35 (right of private defence), and Section 318 (cheating).
The matter reached the apex court after a complex series of lower court interventions. On April 15, the Supreme Court had stayed a Telangana High Court order that had granted Khera a one-week transit anticipatory bail.
Appearing for the Assam government, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta argued that the Telangana High Court lacked territorial jurisdiction in the matter. He pointed out that Khera’s plea did not sufficiently explain why he had approached the Telangana High Court instead of the courts in the state where the case was registered.
Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, representing Khera, sought protection against coercive action until April 20. However, the bench maintained that the appropriate remedy lay within the jurisdiction of the Assam courts.
While refusing to entertain the plea for protection, the Supreme Court bench provided specific instructions to ensure a fair hearing in the lower courts. The bench requested the Assam court to take up Khera’s anticipatory bail application expeditiously.
Crucially, the Justices directed the competent court in Assam to decide on the merits of the case without being influenced by any adverse remarks previously made by either the Supreme Court or the Telangana High Court during the course of these proceedings.
