Daijiworld Media Network - Mumbai
Mumbai, Aug. 7: The Bombay High Court on Friday granted bail to Shiv Sena corporator Ramesh Mhatre and four co-accused in the alleged assault on doctors at a municipal hospital in Thane district, while directing that the trial be completed in a time-bound manner.
A bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Ravindra Ghuge and Justice Gautam Ankhad directed the accused to remain outside Maharashtra until the chargesheet is filed. They will be permitted to return to the state only after the trial court frames charges in the case.
The court also directed the Maharashtra government to appoint a special public prosecutor within 10 days to conduct the trial.
Observing that elected representatives are expected to serve the public, the bench said, "If such an elected person assaults his own voters, then it is an assault on the fabric of democracy itself."
At the same time, the court noted that the investigation was progressing swiftly and the accused had already spent time in judicial custody, making them eligible for bail.
The High Court directed police to complete the investigation and obtain reports from the State Forensic Science Laboratory within 12 working days. It further ordered that the chargesheet be filed within five days thereafter.
The trial court has been asked to frame charges within one week of the filing of the chargesheet. The High Court also instructed both the prosecution and defence to avoid seeking unnecessary adjournments once the trial begins.
The bench made it clear that after returning to Maharashtra, the accused must not contact prosecution witnesses or attempt to tamper with evidence.
Mhatre, a corporator of the Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation (KDMC), had earlier been granted bail by a Thane district court on July 15. However, the Bombay High Court took suo motu cognisance of the order on July 18, stayed the bail and directed him to surrender before the police.
The High Court had described the lower court's bail order as "perverse", observing that the magistrate had failed to adequately consider Mhatre's criminal antecedents. The court noted that 18 assault cases had previously been registered against him, although he had been acquitted in 17 of them.
The alleged assault occurred on July 6 at Shastri Nagar Hospital after Mhatre and the other accused reportedly reached the facility following an argument over the alleged delay in providing treatment to a pregnant woman. The confrontation allegedly escalated after the woman's family accused hospital staff of negligence, resulting in an assault on doctors.