TCS case turns political. Owaisi says Nida, AIMIM corporator held for ‘hiding’ her will be proven innocent

Both Khan and Patel, the AIMIM chief asserted, would be proven innocent in the court.

Reacting to their arrest, Owaisi said that educated Muslims have been targeted. “Our worker will present his case in court. No one can be declared guilty based solely on accusations. The filing of an FIR does not mean he is guilty,” he said Monday, alleging that the case has been given a political hue.

On Monday, Maharashtra minister and BJP leader Nitesh Rane dubbed the AIMIM “a terrorist organisation” and compared Owaisi with the slain al-Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden. 

Nashik Police Commissioner Sandeep Karnik had confirmed Patel’s role in supposedly hindering the legal process among others. An FIR (first information report) has been filed against Patel under Section 249 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for assisting Khan in evading the police and legal action. He was also questioned in Maharashtra’s Sambhaji district, where he resides, although the case was registered in Nashik. 

Trouble seems to be mounting for Patel with the Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar civic administration planning to demolish his two-storey house in Naregaon over allegations of illegal construction. Deputy Mayor Rajendra Janjal confirmed that a notice was issued to Patel on 9 May, two days after Nida Khan’s arrest. 

The civic administration stated that it intended to disqualify Patel under Section 10(d) of the Maharashtra Municipal Corporation Act, for aiding or constructing unauthorised and illegal structures. 

Patel is learnt to have approached the Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar district court seeking a stay on the demolition, claiming that the notice issued to him was illegal. He has also sought two weeks to respond to the civic body’s notice.

Owaisi and several AIMIM leaders have been defending Patel, alleging this was a case of political targeting and a media trial. 

In Mumbai, the Shiv Sena (Eknath Khadse faction) has sought a detailed probe into Patel’s role in the case. Sena minister Sanjay Shirsat alleged that AIMIM leader Imtiaz Jaleel pressured the party corporator to provide shelter to Khan.

A special investigation team (SIT) is investigating the nine FIRs linked to alleged sexual harassment, molestation, hurting religious sentiments and attempts at religious conversion at TCS’s Nashik BPO unit. 

There were complaints by women employees that they were allegedly pressured to perform prayers, wear religious attire, and consume non-vegetarian food. Khan, meanwhile, has been sent to police custody till 11 May.