Three youths arrested for allegedly assaulting lawyer Prashant Bhushan were on Thursday remanded in judicial custody for a day by a Delhi court.
“I remand the three accused to one-day judicial custody. The application of police for their custodial interrogation would be dealt with by the court concerned,” Metropolitan Magistrate Jasjeet Kaur said.
Justice Kaur refused to hear the Delhi Police plea seeking the three accused in its custody for their interrogation.
The police wanted the trio, Joginder Pal Singh Bagga, Vishnu Gupta and Inder Verma to be in its custody for two days to unravel the conspiracy behind the attack on Mr. Bhushan, who is a key member of Team Anna.
The three accused, Bagga, Verma and Gupta, meanwhile, refused to undergo Test Identification Parade (TIP) by Mr. Bhushan on the ground that they had been “all over on TV news channels” and the TIP is vitiated on that count.
Another magistrate, who dealt with the TIP application, however, cautioned the trio that their refusal to undergo the TIP would be construed as an evidence against them during the trial. The accused re-affirmed their decision that they would not undergo the TIP.
Bagga and Gupta were arrested from Bangla Sahib Gurudwara today when they were allegedly on their way to surrender before court.
Third accused Inder Verma was apprehended at Bhushan’s chamber yesterday right after the attack.
Meanwhile, over 50 suspected Sri Ram Sene and Shahid Bhagat Singh Krantikari Sena activists assembled outside Patiala House court premises and raised slogans against Mr. Bhushan for his reported remarks for a plebiscite on the Jammu and Kashmir issue.
The activists, after the court proceedings, had an altercation with five persons who claimed themselves to be Anna supporters and beat up two of them. The victims were taken to Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital by the police.
The two, who sustained injuries, were identified as Mohammed Shaufi and Raj Kumar.
