Sharad Pawar's assailant granted bail

New Delhi: Harvinder Singh, who was arrested for slapping Union Minister Sharad Pawar at a function here last month, was today granted bail by a Delhi court.

District Judge H S Sharma granted bail to Singh while directing him not to indulge in any violent activity in the future. Singh was granted bail on a personal bond of Rs 10,000 and a surety of like amount.

While pleading for bail, Singh had on December 16 told the court that he had suffered a bout of mental disorder and lost his senses minutes before the incident on November 24,
2011.

Singh said that he had been suffering from mental disorder and undergoing regular treatment since 2004. His counsel R S Dhaka had contended his client had been
falsely implicated in the "petty case" of slapping due to political pressure and it was a fit case for bail.

The police, however, had opposed Singh's bail plea, saying he is a threat to society and there was an apprehension that he might repeat his offence.

Advertisement

Singh, a small-time transporter, had assaulted Pawar outside an auditorium on Parliament Street after a public function, saying it was a protest against price rise and
corruption.

Singh had earlier slapped former Telecom Minister Sukh Ram in Rohini court premises minutes after the Himachal Pradesh politician was sentenced to jail in a corruption case.
Earlier, on December 14, a magistrate had dismissed Singh's bail plea saying as per the medical report received from Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences (IHBAS)
he is a patient of "bipolar affective disorder" and requires treatment for two-three weeks before he could be examined by the medical board.

Advertisement

The court had also directed the IHBAS Director to get Singh medically examined from a medical board within 10 days and submit the report on December 22.