Gadkari house bomb hoax caller gets conditional bail

Nagpur: The judicial magistrate first class (JMFC) Sonali Jagtap has granted conditional bail to the accused who had threatened to detonate a bomb at Union minister Nitin Gadkari's residence earlier this month. The accused, Umesh Vishnu Raut (40), has been admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) at Mayo Hospital since his arrest and it was his brother, Mangesh, who had filed the bail application on his behalf.On August 3, Umesh had called police control room around 8:45am and warned that a bomb has been placed at Gadkari's residence, which would explode in 10 minutes. Following the call, police machinery swung into action and bomb detection and disposal squads, dog squads, and quick response teams (QRTs) were dispatched to Gadkari's residence. Taking no chances, city police rushed teams to the minister's under-construction house in Mahal and his residence on Wardha Road. As Gadkari's residence on Wardha Road falls under Pratap Nagar police station jurisdiction, a team from there promptly reached the minister's residence. Bomb detection and disposal squad and dog squad thoroughly searched the entire area. However, nothing suspicious was found. After determining that the threat call originated from Medical Chowk, Siraspeth area, Umesh was apprehended. Advocate Akshay Joshi represented the accused.Umesh, who lives in a rented room in Sakkardara area along with four friends, had on the morning of the incident asked a friend for a mobile phone on the pretext of calling his father. "Umesh is an alcoholic. Since his arrest, he has been admitted to Mayo Hospital," said Mangesh, who filed the bail application stating that his brother needs to be admitted to a private hospital for treatment.