Controversial ‘activist’ Teesta Setalvad and her husband Javed Anand have today moved to the Gujrat High Court after the Ahmedabad city sessions court rejected their bail plea. According to reports, Setalvad and Javed Anand have appealed in the HC against the lower court order.
Setalvad and Javed’s appeal is expected to come up for hearing on Monday. The sessions court had yesterday rejected their anticipatory bail plea in the 1.4 crores funds embezzlement case. Earlier last month the Supreme Court had granted them interim relief from arrest till May 31. The SC had asked them to move to a competent court in Gujrat for anticipatory bail. They had appealed for anticipatory bail for an FIR lodged against them on March 30 by a man named Raees Khan. Raees Khan was the former close aide of the couple and worked in their NGO.
Teesta Setalvad’s troubles root from an alleged 1.4 crores funds embezzlement case against her and her husband. She had allegedly collected funds for the 2002 riot victims and instead used it for personal luxury and expenses. The allegations had come to light after one of the residents of the Gulbarg Housing Society filed a complaint against her alleging that she had embezzled funds collected for the 2002 riot victims through her NGOs Sabrang Trust and Citizens for Justice and Peace.
After the complaint, six bank accounts belonging to Teesta, her husband and the two NGOs were frozen by the Gujrat government in 2015. An appeal to unfreeze the bank accounts was rejected by the Gujrat HC in 2015 and by the SC in 2017.
It is alleged that she had used the funds collected in the name of riot victims for liquor, movies, gadgets and personal goods. Further, it was also found that her NGO has violated FCRA norms. The Sabrang Communications and Publishing Pvt Ltd had allegedly received Rs 2.9 lakhs from the Ford Foundation even if it was not registered under FCRA.
Setalvad has had several allegations against her including luring and misguiding a key witness into giving false testimony, FIRs for tweeting objectionable pictures of Hindu Gods and also FIRs for promoting enmity on religious grounds.
