Judicial Magistrate III (in-charge) Arunachalam on Monday granted the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the State Crime Branch CID time till 4 p.m. on October 29 to produce Kerala-based People's Democratic Party (PDP) leader Abdul Nasser Maudhany. The case relates to the planting of a bomb inside a telephone booth at the Coimbatore Press Club on December 30, 2002.
The SIT had obtained a production warrant from the Coimbatore court against Mr. Maudhany and formally recorded his arrest in the Bangalore prison where he is lodged in connection with the Bangalore bomb blasts case. It had also obtained a Prisoner Transit Warrant to bring him to Coimbatore. Subsequently, it encountered problems in bringing the PDP leader here. SIT sources said that initially, the issue was that Mr. Maudhany's presence was needed in Bangalore for the blasts case trial.
Then arose the question of who should provide escort — Karnataka police or Tamil Nadu police. It stood resolved now with the Tamil Nadu Police tasked with bringing him to Coimbatore on October 29 after their election bandobust duty is completed.
Citing his health condition, the PDP leader is said to have expressed inability to travel to Coimbatore either by train or road.
The issue of bringing him by flight with police escort has to be decided by the Tamil Nadu government, the sources said.
