Court allows Jerrit to get back mobile, laptop from cops

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court (HC) has allowed an application by Jerrit John, a filmmaker who had allegedly flung chemical on his ex-girlfriend Aryanka Hosbetkar’s face in 2012, seeking his belongings, including a laptop and blackberry phones that are in police possession.

The court had allowed it on the condition that if the investigating agency needs it in the future, John will have to submit it before them.

According to petition filed by John, he had been convicted for five years by the sessions court and it was mentioned in the order copy that his belonging should be returned to him when the appeal period gets over.

His lawyer Amin Solkar, also submitted that those articles are not in any way concerned with the crime.

The court record showed papers in the name of family and accused, white coloured Blackberry mobile phone, I-pad with charger, Apple iPhone, and silver coloured Apple laptop with charger apart from the seized car.

The single bench consisting of Justice A.M. Badar observed that the record does not reveal that all these articles, which are claimed back, were not used in the commission of the crime.

The court directed the prosecution to returned them and disposed of the petition.

On November 10, 2012, John’s ex-girlfriend Aryanka Hosbetkar had returned from a cycling trip with some of her friends, when Jerrit reached her Worli residence, threw a chemical on her face while her mother and friends watched, pushed her back inside her house and locked the door from outside before leaving.

Jerrit was arrested on the same day, and charged with causing grievous hurt and wrongful confinement.

The Dadar police, following fresh allegations of past assault by Hosbetkar, had later added the section for attempt to murder against him and filed a chargesheet in February 2013, Jerrit spent almost three years either in police custody or judicial custody, with the court rejecting his bail pleas.