Ponty shootout case: Court cancels Namdhari's interim bail

New Delhi: A Delhi court has cancelled the interim bail of sacked Uttarakhand minorities panel chief Sukhdev Singh Namdhari, accused in a 2012 shootout here that killed liquor baron Ponty Chadha and his brother Hardeep, and sent him to jail.

Additional Sessions Judge Vimal Kumar Yadav sent Namdhari to 14 days' judicial custody while noting that the main complainant, Nandlal Mahto, had turned hostile in the matter and it could not be ruled out that the accused had threatened him and given him gratification to turn him.

"Prosecution Witness Nandlal Mahto has taken a turn and his deposition seems to have been tainted...Thus the possibility as apprehended by the applicant (Hardeep's wife) cannot be ruled out," the judge said while cancelling the interim bail with a direction that Namdhari be produced before the court on the next date of April 18.

The court, which allowed the plea of Hardeep's wife filed through advocate Vijay Aggarwal, also noted that there was no application seeking extension of interim bail which meant that "on expiry of the bail the accused has to surrender and the application succeeds."

"As such the accused be taken into custody and sent to judicial custody, to be produced on next date of hearing on April 18," it said.

Namdhari, the alleged main conspirator in the case, was granted interim bail on November 27 last year on medical grounds, which was extended from time to time.

The court, which noted that it was shown that Namdhari was suffering from various ailments like hepatitis C, blood pressure and heart problems apart from depression and having suicidal tendencies, also directed the prison authorities to continue his treatment in jail.

"The prison authorities are called upon to ensure the treatment of the accused as has been continuing so that the benefits derived so far may not be lost and to the extent possible accused be kept under the constant observation round- the-clock and an exclusive attendant may be made available to him so as to avoid any untoward incident," it said.

The court gave the direction after it was submitted by the police that the accused can be taken to specialised hospitals from jail for treatment and therefore, interim bail is not required to be extended further.