The couple dismissed the Mumbai police's assertion and called it politically motivated.
A day after Mumbai Police Commissioner Sanjay Pandey refuted with video evidence the claims of "inhuman treatment" in the Khar police station by Maharashtra MP Navneet Rana and her MLA husband Ravi Rana, questions are now being raised on the MP's clarification claiming "ill-treatment" in the lock-up of Santacruz police station and not at Khar police station. A copy of the Bandra magistrate's order sending the couple to prison has surfaced.
The remand order, in the first paragraph itself, says that the accused were presented before the magistrate at 12:30 pm where they did not complain against the police.
When an accused is brought to a court for a remand, the magistrate's first question to them is if they have any complaints against the police.
Mumbai police sources say if the Rana couple were really ill-treated, they would have told the magistrate right then.
Opposing the "ill-treatment" allegations, the Mumbai Police is expected to issue CCTV footage from the Santacruz police station to prove that the accused couple were treated well even there, news agency ANI reported.
The couple dismissed the Mumbai police's assertion and called it politically motivated.
"Every baseless and senseless allegation backed with a political motive doesn't necessitate a reaction. Let them come forth with evidence and we'll deal with it," the couple's lawyer Rizwan Merchant told ANI.
The Independent MP from Amravati had earlier written to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla claiming "inhuman treatment" in "Khar police station" after her "illegal arrest", where she said she was denied water to drink and faced casteist slurs.
The Mumbai Police Commissioner had then tweeted a 12-second video with the caption "Do we say anything more". The video clip shows the Rana couple sitting on chairs and sipping tea in front of police officials at a police station. Bottles of mineral water are also seen on the table in front of them.
The couple's lawyer then said the complaint of Navneet Rana being subjected to ill-treatment is not about the detention at Khar police station, but about the lock-up at Santacruz police station.
Navneet Rana and Ravi Rana were arrested on Saturday after they gave a call for chanting Hanuman Chalisa outside Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray's home 'Matoshree' in Mumbai, which triggered angry protests by Shiv Sena workers and supporters. The couple later withdrew their call, citing Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Mumbai for an event.