Air India 'pee gate': 'Unzipping wasn't for sexual desire', accused tells court
Darpan News Desk IANS, 11 Jan, 2023 12:07 PM
New Delhi, Jan 11 (IANS) Shankar Mishra, who is accused of urinating on an elderly female co-passenger in a drunken state on a New York-New Delhi Air India flight in November last year, told a Delhi court on Wednesday through his lawyer that 'unzipping' his pants was not for the purpose of 'sexual desire', and hence he cannot be considered as a 'lustful' man.
"He could not control his drinks, but the unzipping was not for sexual desire. The complainant's case does not put him as a lustful man," the counsel representing Mishra, Manu Sharma, told the court.
He contended that Mishra's actions, while obscene, were not intended to sexually harass the victim.
The Metropolitan Magistrate of Patiala House courts, Komal Garg, who had reserved the verdict earlier, denied Mishra's bail plea on Wednesday, saying that the alleged act of the accused of relieving himself upon the complainant was "utterly disgusting and repulsive" and the act itself is sufficient to outrage the modesty of a woman.
As Mishra had failed to join the investigation even after a notice under Section 41A of the CrPC was served to him, his conduct "does not inspire any confidence", the court observed.
The accused's counsel argued that Mishra did not make any attempt to run away from the inquiry process by Air India, while questioning the need for the issuance of a non-bailable warrant in the case.
On January 7, the court had sent Mishra to 14-day judicial custody.
In the video that is now viral on social media, Rashid can be heard saying that "when one is in a fit of rage, he can cut anyone into 36 pieces, instead of just 35." When asked whether he was justifying the murder, Rashid says that 'It happens'.
Phogat had come to Goa on August 22 and was staying at a hotel in Anjuna. She felt uneasy that night and the next morning, she was taken to St. Anthony hospital in Anjuna where she was declared brought dead.
Besides, the VB has also initiated proceedings in the court against three accused -- R.K. Singla, Deputy Director with the food and civil supplies, and Pankaj Kumar and Inderjit Singh, both personal assistants of former food and civil supplies minister Ashu -- to declare them as proclaimed offenders.
On November 11, the Supreme Court had asked the Centre to file an affidavit to inform it about the number of medical students who were pursuing their studies in Ukraine who have been accommodated in other countries. On Tuesday, a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Vikram Nath scheduled the petition filed by Archita and others for further hearing on November 29.
Reacting to a submission made to the UT Administrator by the Haryana Assembly Speaker, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader in a letter to the Administrator said Chandigarh was an inalienable part of Punjab and the Haryana government could not apply for a land swap without taking the consent of the parent state.
Director General of Police Punjab Gaurav Yadav identified the arrested accused as Ramjan Khan, alias Raj Hooda. He said police teams have also arrested his two accomplices -- Happy Mehla (19) and Sahil Mehla (18), both resident of Hanumangarh in Rajasthan.
