Aakar Patel Row Heats Up As Delhi Court Directs Writer Not To Leave Country Without Permission

The fresh orders come a day after the central investigating agency moved Delhi Sessions court challenging a special court's ruling that gave relief to Patel on Thursday.

Journalist, Writer and Former Amnesty International India head Aakar Patel. (File Photo/ Getty)

New Delhi: A Delhi court on Friday directed former Amnesty India chief and activist Aakar Patel not to leave the country without its permission. 

The court has even stayed an order directing the CBI to withdraw a Lookout Circular (LOC) issued against Patel in a case relating to the alleged violation of the Foreign Contributions Regulation Act (FCRA), news agency PTI reported.

Additionally, the court has also put on hold a Magistrate order that asked the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Director to issue a hand-written apology to the writer-activist. 

On Thursday, Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Pawan Kumar of the Rouse Avenue court had also sought a written apology from the CBI director.

The court posted the matter for further proceedings on April 12 (Tuesday).

The fresh orders come a day after the central investigating agency moved Delhi Sessions court challenging a special court's ruling that gave relief to Patel on Thursday.

Earlier in the day, CBI even refused to file a compliance report in connection to a Delhi court's direction to set aside the Lookout Circular issued by the probe agency against Patel.

Patel, meanwhile, was stopped again last night at an airport and was informed that the CBI had not withdrawn the LOC against him. 

As per Patel, he was stopped by immigration at Bengaluru Airport on Thursday night despite the favourable court order. "have been stopped at immigration again. cbi has not taken me off their look out circular" he said in a tweet.

The court had even noted that apart from the monetary loss, the applicant had suffered mental harassment and thus the applicant can approach the court or other forum for the monetary compensation, PTI stated further in its report.

Patel sued the CBI for contempt today after he was stopped last night from flying to the US to take up his foreign assignment and lecture series organised by various universities till May 30.