Madani arrested for Bangalore blasts

After days of drama and resistance, People’s Democratic Party (PDP) leader Abdul Nasser Madani walked into a Bangalore prison on Tuesday, with the Karnataka police finally managing to arrest the Kerala radical cleric charged in the 2008 Bangalore serial blasts case. The arrest came a week after the Karnataka police landed up in Kerala’s Anwarasseri town with a warrant for his arrest. The arrest came around 1.30 pm outside the Jamia Anwar orphanage founded by Madani in Anwarasseri in Kollam district.He was remanded in police custody till August 26.
The 45-year-old radical, who was camping here, had boarded a tempo, which was to take him to the magistrate court in Karunagappally where he was to surrender. Just as the engine roared, hundreds of Kerala policemen in riot gear moved in. A handful of PDP supporters shouted slogans as the team led by Kollam SP Harshita Attalluri surrounded the vehicle. Sleuths from the Karnataka police then entered and arrested Madani. He was driven straight to the airport here and flown to Bangalore in the evening.
A three-member team of the Karnataka police had arrived on August 11. But what followed was more resistance from the politician. Madani started calling the shots and law enforcers were reduced to onlookers. Passions threatened to spill over as subtle appeals were made to invoke religious sentiments. Kerala home minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, who stressed that the state police would help the Bangalore cops, tried to ward off criticism over the delay in the arrest. Kodiyeri’s Karnataka counterpart V S Acharya alleged that Kerala hadn’t kept its promise to cooperate in the arrest. PDP had previously been an ally of the CPM-led ruling front.
By arresting Abdul Nasser Madani hours before his anticipatory bail plea came up in the Supreme Court, the Karnataka police on Tuesday rendered his plea infructuous. Madani’s bail plea was scheduled before an SC bench at 2 pm, but by the time his counsel, Pinaki Misra, stood up to argue the case, Madani had been arrested. State’s counsel Sanjay Hegde said the plea for bail was meaningless as the accused had already been arrested. The bench agreed with Hegde and said no relief could be granted as the court could not convert an anticipatory bail plea into a regular one. However, it said if he moved for regular bail then the court would decide it expeditiously.