YouTuber Elvish Yadav gets bail in drugs case, to be taken to Gurugram from Noida jail on Saturday
Noida, Mar 22: A Gautam Buddh Nagar court granted bail to controversial YouTuber Siddharth Yadav alias Elvish Yadav in a drugs case on Friday, six days after he was lodged in a jail here, his lawyers said.
The jail authorities said they have received Yadav's release order but he would be handed over on Saturday to the custody of a court in Haryana's Gurugram, where he is to be produced in an assault case involving content creator Sagar Thakur alias Maxtern.
The hearing in the Gurguram court is scheduled for March 27.
Yadav was arrested on March 17 by the Noida Police in connection with its probe into suspected use of snake venom as a recreational drug in parties he hosted.
Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Jaihind Kumar Singh also granted bail to two of the YouTuber's associates -- Ishwar and Vinay Yadav -- who were arrested on Thursday, advocate Prashant Rathi said.
"The court has granted bail to Yadav, who will have to furnish two bail bonds of Rs 50,000 each," the lawyer who represented the YouTuber in the court along with advocate Deepak Bhati, said.
The controversial 26-year-old YouTuber, also the winner of reality show Bigg Boss OTT 2, has been booked under provisions of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, Wildlife Protection Act and Indian Penal Code (IPC), police said.
Luksar Jail Superintendent Arun Pratap Singh said the court's release order for Yadav has been received by the prison authorities.
"We have also received a production warrant for Elvish Yadav in a Gurugram court. He will not be released from Luksar Jail but will be sent to the court. Whether to release him or keep him in jail will be decided by the Gurugram court," Singh told PTI.
He said Yadav would be taken to Gurugram, his home city, by the Luksar Jail authorities on Saturday.
Yadav was among the six people named in an FIR lodged at Noida's Sector 49 police station on November 3 last year on a complaint from a representative of animal rights NGO People for Animals (PFA). The five other accused, all snake charmers, were arrested in November but are currently out on bail, officials said.
The case was lodged under provisions of the Wildlife Protection Act and IPC sections 120B (criminal conspiracy), 284 (negligent conduct related to poison that endangers human safety) and 289 (negligent conduct with respect to animals).
Charges under the NDPS Act have also been added to the FIR, police said.
The five snake charmers were arrested from a banquet hall in Noida Sector 51 on November 3 last year and nine snakes, including five cobras, rescued from their possession, while 20 ml of suspected snake venom was also seized.
However, police had said Yadav was not present at the banquet hall and they were probing his role in the case that allegedly involved the use of snake venom as a recreational drug.
PFA chairperson and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Maneka Gandhi has accused Yadav of involvement in illegally selling snake venom.
On November 4 last year, Yadav was briefly stopped for questioning by police in Rajasthan's Kota while he was travelling with his friends in a car but was let off.
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National Synodal Assembly 2026 begins in Bengaluru with over 220 delegates
Bengaluru: The Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI) on May 1 inaugurated its National Synodal Assembly 2026 at St. John’s Medical College, bringing together more than 220 delegates from across the country under the theme Synodal Pilgrims of Hope.
The assembly is part of the global synodal process initiated in 2021 by Pope Francis, which calls for greater participation, dialogue and shared responsibility within the Church. In India, the process has involved consultations at diocesan, regional and national levels.
Participants at the assembly include two Cardinals, 25 Bishops, 65 priests, more than 20 women religious, and over 100 lay faithful, including youth and women leaders.
The gathering began with a Eucharistic celebration led by Filipe Neri Ferrão. In his homily, he described the assembly as a moment of grace and discernment and called on delegates to walk together in prayer, listening and missionary commitment.
He spoke about the importance of the Risen Christ in the mission of the Church and urged the faithful to be witnesses of the Gospel. Referring to the conversion of St Paul, he said every baptised person has a role in spreading the message of Christ. He also highlighted the example of St Joseph the Worker, stressing the dignity of labour and the call to holiness in everyday life.
The formal inauguration included the invocation of the Holy Spirit through Veni Creator Spiritus and the lighting of the ceremonial lamp. Deputy Secretary General Fr. Stephen Alathara welcomed the delegates and described the gathering as a spiritual journey.
In his presidential address, Cardinal Ferrão referred to the CCBI pastoral plan titled Journeying Towards a Synodal Church: Mission 2033 and called on participants to build on the vision outlined at the 36th Plenary Assembly held in Bhubaneswar in 2025.
Delegates will reflect on four key themes identified from 16 pastoral priorities: interreligious dialogue and peacebuilding, inclusion of the excluded, poverty and integral ecology, and support for children and youth.
The discussions are being conducted through a method of spiritual conversation aimed at encouraging listening, dialogue and collective decision-making. The focus is on translating these discussions into practical actions within the Church.
The assembly also looks ahead to the Jubilee Year 2033, which will mark 2,000 years of the Redemption, and aims to strengthen the Church’s mission in the coming years.
Further consultations are scheduled for September 2026, with the process expected to conclude at the 38th Plenary Assembly of the CCBI in January 2027.
Organisers said the assembly seeks to strengthen unity within the Church and promote participation of all sections, including women and youth, in shaping its future direction.
