A Gujarat sessions court, Wednesday, overturned a lower court sentence and conviction of Congress MLA Jignesh Mevani and nine others in a case of unlawful assembly for taking out a public rally without the permission of the police in 2017.

Setting aside the lower court judgement, a sessions court in Mehsana district observed that debates and bona fide criticism of government actions are essential for the existence of democracy while also quoting former US President Abraham Lincoln: “Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not for themselves, and under a just God, cannot long retain it.”

The sessions court in its judgement noted that the prosecution’s entire case was baseless and lacked any substance or evidence.

Additional Sessions Judge CM Pawar allowed the appeal of Jignesh Mevani, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Reshma Patel, and others against the May 2022 order of a judicial magistrate court which had convicted and sentenced them for three-months in jail under sections 143 (unlawful assembly) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

In July 2017, an FIR was lodged against Dalit rights activist Jignesh Mevani and others at the Mehsana ‘A’ division police station for taking out an “Azadi march” in support of landless farmers of the area, without police permission, from Mehsana town to Dhanera in Banaskantha district.

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Mevani and other accused had sought permission from authorities to organise a rally under the banner of Rashtriya Dalit Adhikar Manch to air grievances of members of the Dalit community.

Jignesh Mevani—a prominent Dalit leader—is also a working president of the Gujarat Congress.

An executive magistrate via an order June 27, 2017 granted the permission for the rally, however, it was rescinded on July 7 of that year on grounds of public disorder but Mevani and others persisted and went ahead with their planned rally leading to an FIR against them for unlawful assembly under section 143 of the IPC.

Mevani, at the time, was an independent legislator from Banaskantha district’s Vadgam and was reelected from the same constituency on Congress ticket in the December 2022 elections.

Justice Pawar in his ruling observed that “deliberations, discussions, debates and bona fide dissent against policies of government and even bona fide criticism of action of government are essential for the existence of democracy in the nation.”

The sessions judge also highlighted the misuse of power and process of law by authorities for suppressing the voice of people, and noted showing “dominance of power” is not unknown even in a democratic set up.

The judge noted that in a democracy elected leaders meant to serve the people not to rule them, adding that a democratic nation is duty-bound to “protect the rights of citizens without any fear of criticism for survival of the ethos of democracy in the nation.”

He observed that right of freedom will be nullified in a democracy if dissent or peaceful protest is branded as an offence.

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A first-year medical student, apparently stressed out due to examinations and studies, allegedly jumped to her death from the terrace of a government-run college in Pune on Wednesday morning, officials said.

According to the police, the deceased—a 21-year-old student at Pune’s government-run B J Medical College purportedly died of suicide after she jumped from the terrace of the Sassoon General Hospital, which is attached to the college on Wednesday morning.

A senior police official said the young student was distressed from the past few days to due pressure of examinations and studies and unfortunately resorted to taking such an extreme step, instead of seeking counselling and help.

Deputy Commissioner of Police Smartana Patil said the deceased, a first-year medical student, was apparently stressed due to the pressure of studies and was often found crying during the past three-four days.

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DCP Patil said the deceased girl’s parents had asked her to appear in exams even if she was unprepared which and even provided her psychiatric help and were by her side for the past three days.

The officer said her parents also took her to a psychiatrist for consultation and did not leave her side for the past week and also accompanied her to college on the fateful day, however, she somehow managed to give them the slip and went to the terrace of Sassoon General Hospital where she jumped to her death.

The victim sustained grievous injuries in the fall and was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) where she succumbed to her injuries, the officer said, adding that prima facie, the case is being treated as a suicide, however, no suicide note was recovered from the scene.

Officer Patil said a case of suicide and accidental death has been registered in this regard and further investigation is ongoing.

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A shocking story has come to light from Haryana’s Gurugram where a spat over a chair in the office took a drastic turn as a 23-year-old man shot his colleague. As per the reports, the victim was critically injured and was rushed to the hospital.

The police have also told the media that an FIR has been registered against the accused. The accused has been identified as Aman Jangra, a native of Hisar Haryana.

The victim, in his statement, said that he had a spat with his colleague Ama Jangra over a chair on Tuesday which spilled over to Wednesday as well. However, the victim added that he walked away from the altercation.

Following the argument over chair, the victim said, Aman, came from behind when he was walking on a road and pulled out a pistol. The accused allegedly shot at him, and fled from the spot.

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After learning about the incident, the police rushed to the spot and shifted Vishal to a private hospital. As per the reports, Vishal’s family members were informed, and based on the complaint by the brother of the victim, a case was registered under 302 (Attempt to murder) of the Indian Penal Code and other sections including section 25, section 54, section 59 of the Arms act.

As per the reports, the accused is still at large, however, DCP, East Vijender Vij, while talking to the media, said that the accused man has been identified and the police are conducting raids in order to nab the accused.

Another shocking story came to light from Gurugram recently where a dog fight led to a murder. As per the reports, a group of men in Gurugram’s village Baspadamka started a WhatsApp group that conducted illegal dog fights. However, during a dog fight a man’s dog died.

Following the dog’s death, a member of the WhatsApp group made distasteful remarks about the dog that led to a fight on February 26. The tension between the two parties led to an altercation and brawl between the two and escalated into rounds being fired on the victim which led to his death.

As per the reports, three men were involved in the incident.

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Stressed by exams, medical student jumps to death in Pune: Police