Rampur, 06 March: Former MP Jaya Prada appeared before a special court here on Wednesday to record testimonies in two instances involving alleged violations of the Model Code of Conduct during the 2019 parliamentary election.
The court scheduled the next hearing in the matter for March 22. She appeared in court after ignoring multiple summonses and seven non-bailable warrants. On February 27, the court labeled her an absconder and ordered police to apprehend and present her before it on March 6. However, Jaya Prada arrived on March 4, and appeared in court with her lawyers before MP-MLA Special Magistrate Shobhit Bansal. The judge granted her conditional bail.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the actor ran as a BJP candidate from Rampur, but lost to Azam Khan of the Samajwadi Party. Cases were registered with Kemri and Swar police.
Police filed complaints, and she was accused of inaugurating freshly finished development projects when the Model Code of Conduct was in effect.
Prada previously won Lok Sabha elections from Rampur in 2004 and 2009 on the Samajwadi Party ticket. SP ejected her later. Former MP Jaya Prada appeared in court of MP-MLA Special Court Magistrate Shobhit Bansal with her attorneys and filed her statements in connection with election code violation proceedings. The court has now arranged the next hearing of the matter on March 22. According to Prosecution Officer Neeraj Kumar, the special MP-MLA court summoned her many occasions but she failed to attend. Non-bailable warrants were obtained against her seven times, but the police were unable to bring her in court.
On February 27, the court proclaimed her a “absconder” and ordered police to arrest her and bring her before the court on March 6. She informed the court that she would physically be at all hearings and that no application for exemption would be made. Jaya Prada petitioned the Allahabad High Court to have the non-bailable warrant quashed after the court ordered police to arrest her on February 27. The court had dismissed her petition.
