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A court here acquitted BJP MLA Mangal Prabhat Lodha and four others booked for violating COVID-19 induced prohibitory orders in September last year, ruling that the prosecution had failed to prove their guilt beyond all reasonable doubt.
Metropolitan magistrate (Girgaum court) Nadeem A Patel had acquitted Lodha, Minal Patel, Jyostna Mehta, Vinal Antarkar and Sarita Patil on June 23, and the detailed order was available on Friday.
Offences committed under section 143 (unlawful assembly) and other relevant provisions of the IPC had been registered against Lodha and four others.
The prosecution had told the court that Lodha and the others were raising slogans against the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) outside the civic body’s D-ward office in south Mumbai when the coronavirus restrictions were in place.
Gatherings of more than five persons were prohibited at the time and they continued with the protest despite being made aware of the order, it had stated.
During the course of trial, the prosecution had examined five witnesses, all policemen.
The court, in its order, noted that it is a fact that the incident occurred, as claimed by the prosecution, at a public place. The incident would have been noticed by many people. However, no independent witnesses were examined.
The video recording of the incident was also not produced and proved by the prosecution, and the specific word used while raising the slogan against the BMC was also not deposed by the witnesses, it said.
The order of which breach was committed by the accused was also not proved by the prosecution. This creates doubt in the story of the prosecution. Therefore, the accused are entitled for acquittal as the prosecution failed to prove their guilt beyond all reasonable doubt, the magistrate said.
