Nitesh Rane, BJP MLA has been assured that no coercive action will be taken against him until January 7

The Maharashtra Police assured the Bombay High Court on Tuesday that it will not take coercive action against BJP MLA Nitesh Rane in an alleged attempt to murder case in connection with an attack on one Santosh Parab, 44, in December 2021, which is a relief for him. Justice CV Bhadang has scheduled Nitesh's pre-arrest bail hearing for January 7 at 2.30 p.m., after ordering the police to make a response and produce the case diary.

After the sessions court in Sindhudurg dismissed his plea on December 30, 2021, Nitesh, the son of Union Minister Narayan Rane, who represents the Kankavali Assembly constituency in Sindhudurg district, approached the HC. Sudeep Pasbola, a special public prosecutor for the state government, claimed that the preliminary investigation suggested that Rane was the mastermind behind the case and that he was attempting to avoid inquiry.

Following Pasbola's request for two days to file an affidavit, Nitesh's lawyer, Niteen Pradhan, requested interim protection from arrest. Pasbola then assured the court that Nitesh would not be subjected to coercion by the police. "He (Nitesh) is being prosecuted just for shame," Pradhan claimed. On December 24, 2021, he arrived before the concerned police station and gave his statement, which was recorded. He was later informed that he might be detained, so he applied for pre-arrest bail."

Pasbola responded that when Nitesh was questioned on December 24, the police investigation had just begun. "On December 26, one of his (Nitesh's) colleagues was caught who confirmed his role in the case," Pasbola stated, pointing to his complicity in the attack. He (Nitesh) is the case's mastermind, according to our investigation." Nitesh was being "falsely accused" in order to "disgrace him in public" by being arrested, according to Pradhan. It's a textbook case of "vindictive use of political power" to settle a score over a recent episode of catcalling outside Vidhan Bhavan and the BJP's victory in the Zilla Madhyavarti Sahakari Bank elections.

Image Courtesy: Facebook@NiteshRane