By IANS,
New Delhi : The Delhi High Court Wednesday issued a notice to Delhi Police on MNS chief Raj Thackeray’s plea for quashing three complaints against him for alleged hate speeches against people of Bihar.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Thackeray moved the court for quashing the trial and three complaints against him at various places, including in Bihar and Jharkhand, for his alleged anti-Bihari speeches in 2008.
Thackeray questioned the jurisdictions of the Bihar and Jharkhand trial courts while taking cognizance of three private complaints against him as he lives in Mumbai.
Justice Sunil Gaur issued a notice to three private complainants – lawyers from Champaran in Bihar, and Ranchi and Jamtara in Jharkhand – and asked them to file their replies by April 16.
Thackeray had earlier also moved the Delhi High Court for quashing two of 16 complaints against him citing similar grounds.
Appearing for Thackeray, senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi said the complaints had been lodged in different places in Bihar and Jharkhand under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and his client stays in Mumbai.
Thackeray sought the court to pass an order “to frame necessary guidelines with regard to filing of complaints, taking cognizance of offences in matters relating to alleged offences where the accused stay outside the jurisdiction of trial court so that frivolous petitions cannot be entertained”.
Following the summons, Thackeray is to appear before the trial court here April 30.
The Supreme Court in January 2010 clubbed together cases registered against Thackeray in Bihar and Jharkhand for alleged hate speeches and transferred these to a Delhi court.