Court extends Hardik Patel's police custody till Nov 3

Ahmedabad: Patel quota agitation leader Hardik Patel's police custody was today extended by two more days till November 3 by an Ahmedabad court in an alleged case of sedition and waging war against the government.

Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate C G Mehta passed the order on an application of the city Crime Branch seeking seven days of further remand.

Hardik was produced before the court by the Crime Branch after his seven-day remand expired today and sought further remand on various grounds.

Public prosecutor Vanrajsinh Jebalia, representing the Crime Branch, stated in the remand application that Hardik, convener of Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti(PAAS), is "not cooperating" in the investigation.

Jebalia told the court that the probe agency has found at least 452 different groups were created on mobile messaging platform 'WhatsApp' by PAAS members across the state after their August 25 mega rally held here at the GMDC ground.

The probe agency argued that it needs to locate all the 'administrators' of these groups to know their roles in spreading "inflammatory messages".

The Crime Branch submitted that it needs Hardik's custody for cross-examination of these administrators who might have received instructions from him for creating disturbance across the state after the rally.

It that Hardik's custody is necessary to delve into the details of domestic as well as foreign funding received by PAAS to run their movement.

The Crime Branch had filed a case of sedition against Hardik and five others on October 21 while charging them under Indian Penal Code sections 121 (waging war against government), 124 (sedition), 153-A (promoting enmity between different communities) and 153-B (assertions prejudicial to national integrity).