Black ink on Subrata Roy's face!

Sahara group chief Subrata Roy received a rude welcome at the Supreme Court premises on Tuesday afternoon as black ink was thrown at his face by a man who repeatedly shouted “Sahara chor hai”.

The attacker was roughed up by lawyers present at the spot, before police whisked him away to the Tilak Marg police station.

The attacker, who identified himself as Manoj Sharma, “lawyer from Gwalior”, had been waiting for Roy to alight from a car of the police convoy that had brought him to the court premises at around 12:30 pm. The Sahara boss, with ink clearly visible on his face, was hurriedly taken away to a safe area in the court premises immediately after the incident.

A senior police officer said Sharma is also suspected of throwing a shoe at former Indian Olympic Association chief Suresh Kalmadi in 2011 at the time of his production in the Patiala House courts.

Sharma managed to get close to Roy despite the heavy police presence, and the ink he threw at the business tycoon also happened to be spilt on some policemen escorting Roy.

After being thrashed, Sharma took off his shirt, exposing his torso, and addressed the large contingent of mediapersons present there. “I threw ink at Subrata Roy as he is a thief and has robbed the poor. He is a thief and I am against thieves,” he said before being taken away.

 “Civilians can walk up to the court’s reception, from where they are issued a pass. But since he is a lawyer, it was easier for him to approach Roy,” saida police officer.

Meanwhile, officials at Tihar Jail, where Roy was taken after being sent to judicial custody for a week, said he would not be accorded any special treatment. “Tihar does not have the facilities to give special treatment to any prisoner. He will eat the food given to the other prisoners, and will be given a mattress to sleep on the floor,” Tihar Jail PRO Sunil Kumar Gupta told Deccan Herald.