New Delhi [India], May 7( ANI) : Former AAP MLA Naresh Balyan, who was arrested under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA), has withdrawn his bail plea from the Delhi High Court following the recent filing of a chargesheet in the trial court.
On Wednesday, Balyan's lawyer informed the court of this development, as the bail plea was scheduled for a hearing today.
Earlier this week, a Delhi court accepted the supplementary chargesheet filed by Delhi Police in the organized crime case against Balyan.
The supplementary chargesheet named four accused: Sahil alias Poli, Vijay alias Kalu, Jyoti Prakash alias Baba, and Balyan.
All four individuals were arrested in connection with the MCOCA case, which stems from an investigation into an organized crime syndicate allegedly run by gangster Kapil Sangwan alias Nandu.
Balyan was taken into custody on December 4 last year in the MCOCA case, although he was previously granted bail in an extortion case.
Previously, seeking urgent relief, his counsel emphasised that the former legislator had been in custody for nearly four months and urged the court to schedule an earlier hearing. Balyan's legal team argued that there was "no shred of evidence" against him, calling the case "completely frivolous" and noting that the FIR did not mention his name.
Delhi Police earlier opposed the bail plea, asserting that, similar to the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, MCOCA imposes restrictions on granting bail unless certain conditions, such as reasonable grounds proving the accused did not commit the crime, are met. In this case, police argued these conditions had not been satisfied. Authorities also claimed that there was "continuous unlawful activity" justifying the invocation of MCOCA against Balyan, and therefore, no relief could be granted.
Naresh Balyan was arrested on December 4, 2024 in this case. The court had extended the time period for 60 days to complete the investigation against Naresh Balyan.