Teesta Setalvad gets protection from arrest till May 2

MUMBAI: A Bombay high court bench comprising of Justice Revati Mohite-Dere on Thursday provided protection to social activist Teesta Setalvad and her associate Javed Anand till May 2, based on their plea for "transit anticipatory bail' filed yesterday.

While allowing their plea, the bench asked them to appear before the probe agency on Friday for recording their statements, as and when required.

The court ruling on Thursday against their arrest was in a criminal case lodged against them by the Gujarat police for alleged misappropriation of funds.

Last week, the Ahmedabad Crime Branch had lodged a complaint against Setalvad and Anand, alleging that through their NGO Sabrang Trust, they had 'fraudulently' secured central government funds to the tune of Rs 1.4 crore between 2008 and 2013.

According to the complaint, the funds had been secured to provide education to poor children in Gujarat and Maharashtra and to help victims of the 2002 post- Godhra riots in Gujarat. But they were misappropriated or used for other purposes.

The case was registered against Setalvad and Anand under various sections, including 403 (dishonest misappropriation of property), 406 (criminal breach of trust), and 409 (criminal breach of trust by public servant, or by banker, merchant or agent) of the Indian Penal Code.

On Wednesday, the activists had yesterday approached the high court for seeking a transit anticipatory bail. Senior counsel Mihir Desai, representing Setalvad and Anand, had told the high court that both of them were willing to appear before the investigating agency on Friday to record their statements.

"Anand will appear before the agency as and when required. Setalvad is going out of India between April 10 and May 15. She would return and appear before the agency again," he said.

The high court should give them a 'transit anticipatory bail,' so that they can travel to Gujarat and seek a regular pre-arrest bail from the appropriate court, he said.