Court cancels Ravi Kana’s pre-arrest bail, orders him to surrender

Noida: Scrap businessman Ravi Kana, who walked out of jail on Jan 29 after an illegal release by authorities, must now surrender after a sessions court cancelled the anticipatory bail it had granted him on Feb 11.The court, on May 25, held that Kana had flouted bail conditions, stayed away from police despite repeated opportunities, and obstructed the investigation in the extortion case against him.Sessions judge Atul Srivastava said Kana’s plea to record his statement through FaceTime showed he was “playing hide-and-seek with the investigating officer by going underground”. Rejecting that application, filed on May 4, the judge said, “If his safety is threatened, he can be provided adequate security. The accused failed to comply with the conditions of anticipatory bail granted to him by this court on Feb 11, thereby hampering the investigation. The anticipatory bail granted to the accused is liable to be revoked.”An FIR was lodged against Kana at Sector 63 police station on Jan 14 on a complaint by Shailendra Sharma. Kana, booked under BNS sections 351 (criminal intimidation), 308 (extortion) and 3(5) (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention), is also accused under the UP Gangster Act and is named in 29 cases.A B-warrant had been issued for Kana’s production on Jan 29 in this case while he was already in custody in another matter. Instead, he was released from jail without any court order. After coming out, he secured anticipatory bail on Feb 11. The court had ordered that if arrested, he should be released on a personal bond of Rs 35,000 and one surety, that he must not influence witnesses, must appear before police within seven days and cooperate with the probe, and must not leave the country without permission.Police moved for cancellation of the bail on Feb 14, saying he was deliberately disobeying the order and warning of “a strong possibility” that he could commit further offences, threaten the complainant and witnesses, or flee the court’s jurisdiction.Kana then moved the Allahabad high court, citing a threat to his life. On April 27, the high court granted him security. The trial court accordingly relaxed its earlier condition and allowed him to appear before police on a date specified by him. Even then, he did not turn up. Instead, he sought to join through FaceTime.Citing a Supreme Court ruling, the sessions court said bail is liberty subject to conditions, not “unlimited freedom”, and revoked the relief.