The Mumbai police filed its chargesheet against Navneet Kaur Rana and husband Ravi Rana about a month after the couple were released on bail. Although the charges of sedition against the two were dropped, deterring police personnel from discharging their duty was added.
The Khar police station, which had arrested the couple, filed the chargesheet before the Borivali Metropolitan Magistrate’s court. The chargesheet runs into 85 pages.
The Ranas were arrested on April 23 and spent around a fortnight in jail before being granted conditional bail. The politician-couple from Vidarbha were arrested for threatening to recite the Hanuman Chalisa outside Matoshree, the private residence of Maharashtra Chief Minister. Navneet is an Independent MP from Amravati, while Ravi is a three-time Independent MLA from Badnera.
Hundreds of Shiv Sena workers held a night vigil at Matoshree; several others camped outside the Ranas’ Khar residence, for what they described as waiting to perform ‘abhishek’ and give ‘maha-prasad’.
The Ranas, however, dropped the plan soon after, citing Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Mumbai as a reason.
The couple was initially booked under Indian Penal Code sections 153 (A) [promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony], 353 [assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty], and 34 (common intention), along with Section 135 of the Mumbai Police Act for violation of prohibitory orders.
Section 124(A) [charges of sedition] of the IPC was added later.
Last month, the sedition charges against the Ranas were dropped after the Supreme Court put on hold pending trials, appeals and proceedings of section 124 (A), and asked the Centre to re-examine the Colonial-era penal law.
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