Pragya refuses to sit in court, complains about cleanliness

Mumbai: BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur on Friday chose to stand for around two and a half hours in the special court conducting trial in the 2008 Malegaon blast case. She got emotional and said one cannot be so insensitive. She said she should be called when she is needed as there are no proper seats and cleanliness in the courtroom and she can’t stand for so long.

However, there was no formal application and she made these complaints orally after the judge had left the courtroom.

Clad in a saffron dress, Thakur entered the courtroom at around 12.38pm supported by two aides. She then went to the dock and sat on the wooden bench after her aide spread a red velvet cloth on the bench. Soon the judge called her to the witness box.

Considering her health the judge offered her a chair having cushion and armrest but she preferred to stand leaning towards the wall saying due to ill-health she will require two person’s help to enter the witness box. She stood for around two-and-half hours till the court proceedings were over.

After the judge left the dais, Thakur started complaining about lack of facilities in the courtroom. Pointing at the chair offered to her she said, “If I sit on it, I would end up on hospital bed.”

She also said till she is convicted she should be provided place to sit. She also said there is no space to breathe. “There is dust wherever I tou-ch… I am allergic to it,” she said adding doesn’t anyone sweep the room?