District sessions court to hear MLA Vincent's bail plea

Thiruvananthapuram: Congress MLA M Vincent, arrested on charges of raping a woman and driving her to attempt suicide, Thursday moved the district sessions court here for bail.

The bail plea is likely to come up for hearing Friday.

The petition, among other things, stated that the charges were baseless and the case was politically motivated.

Vincent moved the district court following the Neyyatinkara judicial magistrate court rejecting his bail plea yesterday.

Meanwhile, district authorities prohibited demonstrations, marches, public meetings and shouting of slogans at Neyyatinkara and Kattakada in the wake of tension between the ruling CPI-M led-LDF and Congress-headed UDF Opposition workers over Vincents arrest.

Restrictions would be in force for five days, district collector S Venkatespathy said. He also asked people in the area not to indulge in such activities.

The LDF had organised an agitation at Balaramapuram demanding Vincents resignation from the MLA post while UDF to protest his arrest. Following clashes between the two groups, police had used canes to disperse them last night.

Representing Kovalam constituency in the state assembly, Vincent has been lodged in a sub-jail at Neyyatinkara.

Vincent was arrested on July 22 after the 51-year-old housewife accused him of raping and stalking her following which she attempted to commit suicide by taking an overdose of sleeping pills.

Both the Congress and the party-led UDF have said the case against him was politically motivated and false.