New Delhi, July 2

An Australian court has refused bail to Indian national Vishal Jood whose release was sought by Haryana CM ML Khattar as well as Delhi BJP leader Kapil Mishra, Olympian Yogeshwar Dutt and Delhi BJP spokesperson Tejinder Bagga.

The hearing was postponed after the defence sought more time to prepare due to the “complexity” of the case. This means that Jood will remain in prison till August 12, the next date of hearing.

The issue has created ripples in Jood’s home state of Haryana where a social media campaign for his release has claimed that he was only trying to protect the Indian flag from being dishonoured by “Khalistanis”.

At the time of his arrest, Jood was allegedly living in Australia under an expired visa. He has been charged for various offences that carry jail terms ranging between two and 10 years. — TNS