In a setback to the accused in the Una Dalit flogging case, the Gujarat High Court denied bail applications of 20 people and asked them to file another application after three months.
Of the total 22 accused, who filed bail petitions before the court, two were juveniles. As the bail applications came up, the complainants’ advocate objected to petitions of 20 accused but in the case of the two juveniles, he didn’t object.
As the proceedings continued, the accused realised that the court was not inclined to grant bail, so the accused withdrew their pleas for bail.
However in the case of the two juveniles, the court granted them bail.
The Gujarat CID (Crime), which investigated the flogging of seven Dalits in Una produced photographs of each of the accused along with reports of test identification parade in the chargesheet against them.
The Dalits were brutally beaten near Mota Samadhiyala Village in Una taluka of Gir Somnath District in Saurasthra on July 11, 2016 for skinning a dead cow.
The issue became a hot topic on national political scene as after the incident, national leaders including Congress scion Rahul Gandhi, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Minister of State for Panchayatiraj Parashotam Rupala, then Gujarat Chief Minister Anandiben Patel and others visited Mota Samadhiyala to show sympathy towards the victims.