Cong leader Abhay Thipsay who defended Nirav Modi in UK court now at ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’

Mumbai, Nov 12: Retired Bombay High Court judge and Congress leader Abhay Thipsay, who was a defence witness of economic offender Nirav Modi in the UK court, was spotted at Bharat Jodo Yatra led by Rahul Gandhi.

Congress posted a tweet on Friday in which he was seen attending the yatra. "Today in #BharatJodoYatra @RahulGandhi ji met retired judges and lawyers and discussed their problems, the current situation in the country and the purpose of the visit. Together we have to get the country out of this difficult situation," the post read.

In one of the four pictures shared by the grand old party, Thipsay was seen holding a mic, apparently addressing a gathering. In another photo, the former judge was seen sharing the stage along with other dignitaries from the legal fraternity.

Abhay Thipsay is a former Bombay High Court judge who joined Congress in 2018. Later, he released a book in which he had blamed Hindus for bomb blast by Islamic radicals, according to a report in OpIndia.

He was under criticism for granting bail to Salman Khan in a hit-and-run case.

Thipsay deposed as a defence witness in the case to oppose extradition proceedings against Nirav Modi and had told the court that the charges of cheating and criminal conspiracy against him would not stand up under Indian law. The ruling BJP had come down heavily on him.

"There is overpowering suspicious circumstances existing from which we can infer that the Congress is trying its best to save and bail out Nirav Modi," senior BJP leader and former Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said, claiming that the development had "unmasked" the opposition party which always tried to "protect" Nirav Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksy, also a fugitive.

Speaking to The Print, the retired judge clarified that he appeared in court as a legal expert and not to defend the diamond merchant.

Meanwhile, Nirav Modi on Wednesday lost his appeal against extradition on mental health grounds as the High Court in the UK ruled that his risk of suicide is not such that it would be either unjust or oppressive to extradite him to India to face charges of fraud and money laundering, PTI reported.

"Pulling these various strands together and weighing them in the balance so as to reach an overall evaluative judgment on the question raised by Section 91, we are far from satisfied that Mr Modi's mental condition and the risk of suicide are such that it would be either unjust or oppressive to extradite him," the ruling states.