Atram: The hunter becomes the hunted
Monday, September 1, 2008 at 4:09 am Under India News 21 views
It was the proverbial spectacle of the hunter becoming the hunted when former Maharashtra Minister Dharmarao Baba Atram was escorted by forest and police officials to the Magistrate’s court at Saswad, around 30 km from Pune, on Saturday (August 30) after arresting and charging him with killing of “Chinkara’ deer.
Devoid of the ministerial paraphernalia having resigned as NCP minister in the wake of the outrage that followed the June 14 poaching incident, Atram sat like an ordinary criminal in the court corridor on a small stool even as the rival counsel argued before the judge for and against the bail plea moved by him after being remanded to judicial custody for 14 days.
And an ambulance stationed in front of the court pressed into service during recess to take him for a second medical examination within two hours, — he had been examined earlier by doctors before his arrest at Bhor—as the alleged hunter of Chinkara again complained of uneasiness.
Inside, his lawyer Dhairyasheel Patil sought to buttress his submissions for release on bail of the main accused informing the court about medical condition of Atram who is said to be suffering from diaBetes and hypertension.
On his turn, public prosecutor Ramesh Ghorpade, emphasizing the “serious nature” of crime under the Wildlife Protection and Forest Act told the judge that according to statements of witnesses it was Atram who fired shots at Chinkara, not just once but twice after missing the target initially in the forest bordering Bhor and Baramati taluka where had had gone for hunting in his ministerial car spotted by red beacon.
As the Magistrate rejected the bail plea saying there was a reasonable ground to believe that the accused if set free at this stage could use his influence to tamper with witnesses and the possibility of his absconding could not be ruled out, there was a hush in the jam packed courtroom.
Within minutes after being remanded to judicial custody and rejection of his bail plea, Atram was shifted to government Sassoon hospital in Pune for continuation of medical treatment. Doctors attending on him said that various tests were being conducted on the former minister whose counsel had earlier told the court that the accused was also in need of urgent angiography.
Meanwhile, there seemed to be an unspoken relief among the team of investigating officers of Bhor sub-division led by Hanumant Dhumal after the state Forest minister patted them for conducting the inquiry without succumbing to any pressure. (PTI)
( This post is from an independent writer. The opinions and views expressed herein are those of the author and are not endorsed by APakistanNews.Com.)
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