A fresh petition seeking custody of Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) legislator Akbaruddin Owaisi was filed in the judicial first class magistrate court in Nizamabad district even as the investigators inquiring into his December 22 speech cut short their five-day custody by a day and sent him back to judicial custody.
The Nizamabad town police filed a petition seeking prisoner transit warrant before the JFCM court requesting custody of the MIM MLA for investigation into his inflammatory speech on December 8.
The Medak police are expected to follow suit on Thursday in a case registered against Akbaruddin and others in 2005.
Custody shortened
In an operation that was kept under wraps, Nirmal police which is investigating the alleged >hate speech of Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul Muslimeen MLA Akbaruddin Owaisi, returned him to judicial custody early on Wednesday, a day before the completion of his five-day police custody period.
In Adilabad, investigators cut short the duration of his five-day custody by a day. He was produced before the JFCM at Nirmal at 6 a.m. and brought back to the District Jail to complete the remaining term of his judicial custody till January 22.
Sources said the MLA was non-cooperative all through the four days of questioning and kept denying anything associated with the hate speech including his voice. “As there was no further use, we decided to return him to judicial custody,” an investigator told The Hindu.
Considering a petition filed by Akbaruddin’s advocates, Md. Rafatullah, V. Balraj and Md. Akbar Hussain, for grant of special category to him, Nirmal JFCM K. Ajesh Kumar granted their request. Order on a petition filed by the Nirmal police praying for recording Akbaruddin’s voice in an “open court” was posted to January 18. The latter’s advocates filed a counter claiming that though such a recording was not unconstitutional, the stage was premature for it to be done now.
Order posted to Jan. 18
Another petition filed by the Nirmal police seeking seven-day police custody of the second accused, Azeem-bin-Yahiya, was posted for order to January 18. A bail petition was filed on behalf of Akbaruddin by advocate Md. Ghouse at Adilabad Sessions Court.
Nizamabad deputy SP J. Ram Mohan Rao said the Adilabad police had been directed to produce Akbaruddin before JFCM Amareswari’s court on or before January 19.
