BJP Telangana MLA Raja Singh sentenced to one-year jail for assaulting cops

Hyderabad: A Hyderabad court convicted controversial BJP MLA Raja Singh in a case of assault on policemen and sentenced him to one year imprisonment.

VRV Vara Prasad, the judge of Special court for Public Representatives pronouncing judgment in 2015, case also imposed a five of Rs5,000 (Dh250) on the MLA.

The conviction, though important, will not attract Raja Singh’s disqualification from the State Assembly as the law requires minimum sentence of two years in any criminal case for an elected representative to be disqualified. Interestingly, the special court, set up on the directions of the Supreme Court to expedite the cases against MLAs and MPs, initially sentenced Singh to two years imprisonment but later halved it on the plea of the MLA’s counsel.

However, the BJP leader will not go to jail immediately as the Special Court granted him bail and gave him a month’s time to challenge the verdict in High Court. After Singh’s conviction police took him into custody and kept him in the court complex till the court granted him the bail.

The case against Raja Singh was booked on December 10, 2015 when he along with his supporters tried to disrupt a “Beef Festival” of Dalit organisations in Osmania University campus in Hyderabad. When police stopped them and took Raja Singh into custody, his supporters held a demonstration at Bollarum police station where the MLA was lodged. When police stopped him from meeting his supporters, he and others assaulted the police officer on duty, Sub Inspector Mallesh.

A case was booked against Raja Singh under Indian Penal Code section 33 (assault or criminal force to deter a public servant from discharge of duty), and 506 ) criminal intimidation.

The Special Court convicted him on the basis of a video of the violent incident apart from other evidences produced by additional public prosecutor B Ajay Kumar.

Raja Singh is known for raking up controversies and making hateful and provocative speeches.

Singh who represents Goshamahal constituency in Hyderabad has also emerged one of the most aggressive faces among the state BJP leaders in the cause of “cow protection”. He has a committed support base ready to respond to his call for action. He was the only BJP candidate to be elected in Telangana Assembly elections in December 2018.

Reacting to his conviction Raja Singh said that he was trying to discharge his duty of protection of “Gau Mata” (mother cow).

“I am even ready to be hanged for the sacred duty of protecting cows”, he said.