Telangana High Court has granted interim bail to actor Allu Arjun after his arrest over the stampede at Sandhya Theater. The court addressed the quash petition of Arjun and provided the actor with temporary relief for a period of four weeks. As per the remand report, Arjun, identified as A11, was taken into custody at 1:30 pm. The Public Prosecutor had sought the court to reschedule the hearing of the quash petition, terming it as not so urgent. However, his advocate Niranjan Reddy made a plea for interim bail, during the course of hearing.
Arguments Presented by the Defense
- Allu Arjun is a regular visitor to cinemas on the day of his movies' release. The producer along with the management of the cinema hall had intimated the police in advance.
- According to reports, on the day of the incident, Arjun reportedly arrived at the Sandhya Theater at 9:40 pm and was seated on the first floor, whereas the victim of the stampede was on the ground floor.
- The defense pleaded that the police failed to make proper security arrangements for the incident. Arjun's lawyer also brought on record several judgments where courts granted relief on similar facts, like Shah Rukh Khan during Raees promotion.
Prosecution's Counterarguments
The PP argued:
- Arjun was aware of warnings by the police regarding crowd risk prior to the incident.
- The interim bail application was not filed along with the quash petition, and allowing it would be a wrong precedent.
- The stampede happened after the security personnel of Arjun created a ruckus that killed a woman and left her son critically injured.
Judgment of the Court
The High Court dismissed the objections of the PP and allowed the interim bail on the following conditions:
- Arjun shall furnish a personal bond of ₹50,000 to the jail superintendent.
- He is ordered not to interfere with the investigation or influence witnesses.
- The court advised Arjun to approach the Nampally court for regular bail and directed the next hearing in two weeks.
The bail terms are also similarly extended to the owners of Sandhya Theater, who are identified as A1 and A2, who have also been asked to submit surety bonds of ₹50,000.
Important Points
- Allu Arjun has been allowed interim bail for four weeks.
- He should not influence the investigation or witnesses.
- The next date of hearing in the case has been fixed for two weeks and further legal steps will be taken at the Nampally court.
