T’puram: Corporation councillor R Sugathan of BJP was granted regular bail on Wednesday by judicial first class magistrate court at Nedumangad in two criminal cases registered against him. However, the relief will not result in his immediate release from prison as he continues to remain under preventive detention under Kaapa.The court granted bail in the two cases in which Sugathan was accused of assaulting a man in Vattiyoorkavu earlier this year and allegedly attacking police personnel who had arrived to arrest him in connection with Kaapa proceedings. Both cases had earlier seen his bail pleas rejected by the same court before he secured only interim bail earlier this month to facilitate the re-administration of his oath as a councillor.Despite obtaining bail in the two criminal cases, Sugathan will continue to remain lodged at Viyyur central jail as Kaapa is still in force. His release would require separate legal relief from the preventive detention order.Sugathan, who represents the Vazhottukonam ward in the corporation, has been at the centre of a prolonged legal and political controversy since his detention under the Kaapa. The issue assumed political significance after the high court directed 20 BJP councillors, including Sugathan, to retake their oath of office, holding that their earlier oath did not conform to the statutory format.Initially, the Nedumangad court had granted Sugathan interim bail to enable him to attend the oath-taking ceremony. However, as he remained under preventive detention, the HC later permitted him to retake the oath inside Viyyur central jail, where mayor administered the oath in what was considered an unprecedented development in the state.The latest bail order removes one legal hurdle for the BJP councillor, but his continued detention under the Kaapa means his incarceration will continue until further orders are passed by the competent court.
