Himanta wife passport dispute: Pawan Khera moves to SC after setback in Guwahati HC, seeks anticipatory bail

New Delhi: Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera keeps a low profile after spat involving Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and his wife, have moved to Supreme Court The Assam police booked him after the Gauhati High Court rejected his anticipatory bail plea in a defamation and forgery case.On April 24, the Gauhati High Court had rejected Kaira’s anticipatory bail plea in a case registered with the crime branch of Assam Police in Guwahati.

The case was registered against Khera after she claimed at a press conference that Assam Chief Minister’s wife Riniki Bhuyan “holds multiple foreign passports and undisclosed overseas assets”.At a previous hearing, Khera’s lawyers, led by Abhishek Manu Singhvi, argued that he did not pose a flight risk and the arrest was not necessary, saying the case was politically motivated.The Assam government, represented by Attorney General Devajit Lon Saikia, opposed the relief, arguing that the case involved serious crimes, including fraud and forgery, and not just defamation. The court had earlier stayed the order after extensive arguments between the parties.The Telangana High Court had earlier granted him seven days’ transit anticipatory bail, but the Assam Police approached the Supreme Court against it.The Supreme Court on April 17 had refused to extend Khera’s transit anticipatory bail protection and asked him to approach the competent court in Assam in the case related to the allegations against CM Himanta’s wife.what happened to the supreme courtAssam Inspector General of Police Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Assam Police, challenged the maintainability of the plea in the Telangana High Court, pointing out what he called “the patent lacks territorial jurisdiction”.He submitted that the FIR was registered in Assam and Khera did not explain why he could not seek anticipatory bail there.Mehta also pointed out that Kaira sought anticipatory bail in Telangana without clearly proving his presence in the state, adding that “mere possession of some property” did not confer jurisdiction.He told the judge it was a case of “complete abuse of process” and “forum selection”.During the hearing, Justice Dinesh Maheshwari noted that Kaira cited his wife’s residence in Hyderabad. However, the Solicitor General countered that even Khera’s Aadhaar record reflected a Delhi address and that occasional travel or property ownership did not justify jurisdiction, LiveLaw reported.The Telangana High Court had earlier granted Keira a week-long limited transit anticipatory bail. The court noted that his concerns about arrest appeared to be “reasonable and supported by the material in the record,” while imposing a number of conditions, including cooperating with the investigation and limiting public statements that could harm the investigation.The Assam government challenged the order, arguing that Kaira had not proven any compelling reason to bypass the courts in Assam, where the case was registered.