In a major development, the Supreme Court of India on Friday granted bail to former Rajasthan MLA Giriraj Singh Malinga, accused of assaulting a Dalit engineer with the state’s power department. A Bench of Justices MM Sundresh and Aravind Kumar directed the trial court to impose appropriate conditions for the bail.
Malinga, formerly a Congress leader now in the ruling BJP, had surrendered last month following SC’s orders. This came after Rajasthan High Court cancelled his bail.
The SC Bench however had kept Malinga’s Special Leave Petition (SLP) pending, scheduling it for further hearing subsequent to his surrender.
In his complaint, Harshadhipati, an engineer with the Rajasthan electricity department, had claimed that he was brutally assaulted on March 28, 2022. At that time, Harshadhipati was posted in Dholpur and Malinga was a sitting Congress MLA from Bari. Malinga was booked under various sections of the Indian Penal Code and provisions of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
Malinga was represented in the SC by advocates Ajit Sharma and Aditya Vikram Singh. The court orally observed that it seems that the complainant is also a political person. Rajasthan was represented by Additional Advocate General Shiv Mangal Sharma and advocates Amog Bansal and Sonali Gaur. Rajasthan opposed the bail request in its counter-affidavit, highlighting the seriousness of the charges. However, the state ultimately submitted that it would leave the decision to the Supreme Court and comply with its directives.
Malinga’s counsels had also said that he was ‘paraded’ by the concerned Superintendent of Police for a mile following his surrender.
In his complaint, the engineer claimed that Malinga had entered his office with his associates and struck him with a chair while hurling casteist abuses following a disagreement over the removal of some electricity transformers from his constituency.
In May 2022, the Rajasthan High Court had granted bail to Malinga on grounds of judicial cooperation. Shortly after, Malinga’s release was followed by public celebrations, including a roadshow where he allegedly made statements perceived as intimidatory. Subsequently, the complainant sought cancellation of Malinga’s bail, citing concerns that his actions post-release appeared to influence public opinion and undermine the justice process through intimidation.
In July 2024, taking into account the evidence and allegations of Malinga’s public conduct post-bail, including inflammatory remarks and displays of power, the Rajasthan High Court cancelled his bail, directing him to surrender within 30 days.
Malinga then approached the Supreme Court, which temporarily stayed the High Court’s cancellation order, offering him temporary relief. However, last month, the SC had directed Malinga to surrender.
In the months following the 2022 assault, Dalit organisations across Rajasthan had conducted a sustained campaign against Malinga, urging the Congress not to give him a ticket. Left hanging by the Congress party ahead of the 2023 Assembly polls, Malinga, a three-time MLA who was undefeated from the seat since 2008, joined the BJP in November 2023 in the presence of Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat. He was then fielded by the BJP from Bari constituency but lost to BSP’s Jaswant Singh Gurjar by over 27,000 votes.
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