Man accused of threatening lawyer seeks pre-arrest bail

Devendra Gupta, accused of threatening the lawyer of the city-based model who has filed a complaint of rape against senior police officer Sunil Paraskar, today sought anticipatory (pre-arrest) bail.
"We have moved the court seeking pre-arrest bail for Devendra Gupta, against whom advocate Chitra Salunke has filed a case of intimidation. The court granted him protection from arrest till Monday (when the application will be heard)," said advocate Naveen Chomal.
According to Salunke, Gupta threatened her on behalf of Paraskar.
In the bail application filed by his lawyers advocates Chomal and Jayesh Wani, Gupta has denied the allegation. He has said he does not even know the officer.

"Gupta does not know Paraskar but he knew Salunke for past two years. Gupta's family members had approached her two years back when he was arrested in a case of cruelty," advocate Chomal told PTI.
Salunke then took money but did not appear for Gupta, the bail application alleges. "Some other lawyer appeared for him who also charged him. But Salunke did not return the money," advocate Chomal said.

On August 19, before Saluke filed case of intimidation against him, he had gone to see her to discuss some other case, according to Gupta.
"The registration of criminal intimidation case is an afterthought, just to seek cancellation of pre-arrest bail granted to Paraskar," said advocate Chomal.

When contacted, Salunke called Gupta's allegations as "false".
On August 12, the court granted pre-arrest bail to Paraskar, following registration of rape case against him last month. The complainant, a 25-year-old model, has alleged that Paraskar (57) molested and sexually assaulted her on two occasions in December 2013.