Drugs case: High Court rejects bail plea of Kannada film actors Ragini Dwivedi, Sanjjanna Galrani
Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court on Tuesday declined to grant bail to Kannada film actresses Ragini Dwivedi and Sanjjanaa Galrani in the drugs case.
Justice Sreenivas Harish Kumar also dismissed the bail plea of four others, including the anticipatory bail application of film producer Shivaprakash, in the case.
The Central Crime Branch, probing the drug case arrested Ragini Dwivedi and Sanjjanaa Galrani in September. Shivaprakash is still at large, the police said.
The two actresses and the drug supplier Prashant Ranka were in the CCB custody till September 13 and were later remanded to judicial custody on September 14.
Prashant was also denied bail. Since then they were lodged in the Parappana Agrahara Central jail here.
The city police intensified investigation into the drug abuse among celebrities after the Narcotics Control Bureau arrested three people, including a Malayalam tele serial actress Anikha and Bineesh Kodiyeri's aide Mohammed Anoop with synthetic drugs.
The trio were charged with supplying drugs to the celebrities in Bengaluru including Kannada film actors and singers. One of the high profile accused is Aditya Alva, son of former minister Late Jeevaraj Alva.
The CCB probing the case had even raided the Mumbai residence of Bollywood actor Vivek Oberoi who has married Alva's sister but to no avail.
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NIA court to complete framing of charges against 2010 hand-chopping case accused on May 15
Kochi (PTI): A special court here will complete proceedings for framing charges against the prime accused in the 2010 hand-chopping case involving professor T J Joseph, in which PFI activists were accused of attacking him at Muvattupuzha.
Ernakulam Special Court for NIA cases judge P K Mohandas, on April 30, heard the arguments of counsel for accused Savad and Shafeer C and decided to proceed with framing charges against the duo.
A group chopped off Thodupuzha Newman College professor Joseph's right hand in July 2010, accusing him of religious blasphemy in a question paper he had prepared.
The case, later taken over by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), resulted in the conviction of 19 accused.
The first accused, Savad, who allegedly chopped off Joseph’s palm, was arrested in Berram in Mattannur, Kannur, in January 2024, where he had allegedly been hiding under the pseudonym Shajahan.
The NIA also arrested Shafeer, who allegedly arranged shelter and provided logistical support to Savad at Chakkad and Mattannur in Kannur since 2020.
On April 30, the court heard the counsel for the accused and the NIA prosecutor on framing charges against the duo.
"On going through the documents and evidence in the case and on hearing the counsel for the accused and the prosecutor, I am of the opinion that there are grounds for presuming that the first accused has committed offences punishable under provisions of the IPC, the Explosive Substances Act and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, and that the second accused has committed offences punishable under the IPC and the UAPA, and there are materials for framing charges under these provisions against the accused," the court said.
The court directed that Savad be produced and Shafeer, who is on bail, appear before it on May 15 for recording their pleas as part of the charge-framing process.
After framing the charges, the court will schedule the trial in the case.
