By Our Reporter
SHILLONG: Rongram Independent legislator Ismail R Marak got a relief after a criminal petition filed against him at the Gauhati High Court challenging an earlier petition filed by him in a lower court was withdrawn during the hearing of the case here on Friday.
It may be mentioned that the Rongram Independent legislator, in 2011, had filed a criminal petition at the court of the First Class Magistrate I Rymbui against three persons – Escon Marak, Sunen Marak and Gilbert Sangma – from Rongram for allegedly trying to defame his image alleging that the legislator tried to conceal the fact that he owned a petrol pump, while filing his nomination for the 2008 Assembly Elections in the State.
Following this, the trio filed another criminal petition in the High Court on March 13 last to counter the criminal petition filed by the legislator.
The petition which was put up for hearing at the Shillong Bench of the High Court on Friday saw no judgement passed as the writ petition was withdrawn even before any arguments could take place.
While allowing the withdrawal of the writ petition, the legal counsel of the trio also appealed the court to allow the petitioners the liberty to file a fresh criminal petition.
Informing about this development during a press conference, Ismail’s legal counsel Sujit Dey said that the petitioners through their lawyer had sought from the court the permission to withdraw the case with a liberty to file a fresh one.
“They have been forced to withdraw the case since they cannot prove the accusations which they had made against the legislator with any concrete evidence,” he said.
Ismail’s legal counsel also informed that the three people had infact obtained a bail bond from the lower court in connection with the criminal petition filed by the Rongram legislator.