Telangana HC grants Allu Arjun interim bail—here are court's conditions
Telugu actor Allu Arjun was granted interim bail for four weeks by the Telangana High Court on Friday. The bail is in connection with a case where a woman died during the screening of his film Pushpa 2 in Hyderabad. Previously, Arjun was arrested from his Hyderabad residence and taken to Chikkadpally Police Station before being remanded to judicial custody for 14 days by a local court.
Tragedy struck during 'Pushpa 2' premiere: Details here
The arrest comes after a tragic incident at Sandhya Theatre in Hyderabad during the premiere of Arjun's film Pushpa 2 on December 4. A massive crowd had gathered to see Arjun, triggering a stampede when he arrived at the theater around 9:30pm. The chaos claimed the life of a woman named Revathi and left her eight-year-old son hospitalized due to suffocation.
Police action and Arjun's response to the tragedy
After the incident, police registered a case against Arjun, his security team, and the theater management on the basis of a complaint by Revathi's family. Three theater officials were also arrested in connection with the case. Before his arrest, Arjun had announced ₹25L financial aid for the bereaved family and expressed his condolences over their loss.
Court set conditions for Arjun's interim bail
Among other conditions, the court has asked Arjun to execute a personal bond of ₹50,000 for his interim bail. He has to appear before the jail superintendent to execute this bond and has to fully cooperate with the investigation team. The court order also strictly prohibits him from interfering with the ongoing probe or influencing witnesses in any way. Meanwhile, the victim's husband told the media that they didn't consider Arjun responsible and were ready to withdraw charges.
Arjun's lawyer cited similar incident involving Shah Rukh Khan
During the bail hearing, Arjun's lawyer cited a similar incident involving Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan and his film Raees. In that case, one person died but Khan wasn't found criminally liable. The lawyer contended that Arjun was on the first floor of the theater when the stampede broke out on the ground floor, refuting police claims that they hadn't been informed of Arjun's plan to attend a special screening of his film.
