Cowhide bag: Court reserves order on Barun Kashyap’s bail plea

The metropolitan magistrate’s court in Andheri on Saturday remanded creative producer Barun

The metropolitan magistrate’s court in Andheri on Saturday remanded creative producer Barun Kashyap, 24, in judicial custody and reserved its order on a bail application filed by his lawyer for Monday.

Barun Kashyap — who the police claimed filed a false complaint that he was harassed and threatened by cow vigilantes for carrying a cowhide bag in August — was produced before the court as his police custody ended on Saturday. (Facebook)

Kashyap — who the police claimed filed a false complaint that he was harassed and threatened by cow vigilantes for carrying a cowhide bag in August — was produced before the court as his police custody ended on Saturday. The Amboli police sought extension of his custody for a background check and to gather more evidence in the case.

The Amboli police recently filed an FIR against Kashyap under sections 153A (promoting enmity between groups) and 182(B) (use of lawful power of a public servant to injure or annoy a person).

Kashyap’s lawyer Vijay Hiremath objected to the police’s demand and said that custodial interrogation is not required for the background check. “They have been practically investigating the case for almost a month now and he has been illegally interrogated before his arrest and legally in the police custody,” he argued. Hiremath also moved a bail application, saying that Kashyap has been falsely implicated. “If the allegations are true, there should have been an incident reflecting the animosity or fight between two groups. There has not been a single incident,” Hiremath said.

The case took a controversial turn when activist Preeti Sharma Menon alleged that Kashyap was arrested on trumped up charges and accused assistant police inspector Daya Nayak of framing him.