By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter,
Mumbai: Apprehending arrest in the case filed by a Muslim MBA youth against denial of job on religious grounds, five members, including founder and director of a leading diamond company, have applied for anticipatory bail before the Mumbai session court.
The court had on Tuesday admitted bail applications of these five personnel from Hari Krishna Export Limited for hearing and placed the matter for argument on June 1. It has also asked the police not to arrest the applicants till the final hearing of bail plea. Court has also asked the police to file its say on the next hearing.
Zeshan Ali Khan [Photo Courtesy :HT]
The court will also decide on the intervention application filed by Zeeshan Ali Khan, an MBA who filed the police complaint against the company for discrimination. Earlier last week, an application by Khan, 22, an MBA in International Business, had applied to Hari Krishna Exports Pvt Ltd on May 19 and within 15 minutes had received a reply from the company: “Thanks for your application. We regret to inform you that we hire only non-Muslim candidates.” The company had blamed a new HR trainee for the discriminatory mail.
The five who applied for anticipatory bail have been identified as Dipika Tike, Bhaskar Joshi, Mahindra Deshmukh, Ghanshyam Dholakia, Hasmukh Dholakia, the directors of Hari Krishna Export Limited.
The Dholakia duo in their application have said that the reply sent by trainee HR was erroneous and was not intentional and that subsequently an apology letter was also sent to Khan by the company manager.
Not satisfied with the apology letter and the statement released by the company of having 70 Muslim employees in the company, Khan on May 21 had filed a complaint with Vinoba Bhave Nagar police station.
Khan replied to the company’s claim, “These 70 Muslims are labourers, who polish diamonds. Why doesn’t the company speak about hiring Muslims for administrative positions?”
After registering the FIR, Vinoba Bhave Nagar police station transferred the case to BKC police station for investigation. Khan and his two Non-Muslim colleagues have recorded their statements with the police.
Khan along with his family and other Muslim leaders were demanding immediate arrest in the case and were regularly questioning BKC police (about action taken). Former minister Naseem Khan on Sunday had accused Maharashtra government of shielding the firm’s owner.
The police then issued summons to five people from the company due to which they decided to approach the court for anticipatory bail.
Speaking with TwoCircles.net, Khan’s lawyer Advocate Khalid Azmi said, “We knew that police’s summon will give them heads up and they will file anticipatory bail. (So) we have applied for intervention during hearing of their application and the court has said it will decide both applications on June 1.”
“We will strongly oppose their bail as the case is of grievous nature that has demoralized the job seekers from minority community,” Azmi added.
“The reply received by my client from the company reveals the unconstitutional policy of the company and a strict judicial interpretation is required in the matter to reject communal mindset followed by the company in today’s progressive world,” he contended.
Related:
Leading Mumbai diamond export firm rejects Muslim MBA’s job application on religious grounds