High Court refuses to stay Pintos' arrests

Chandigarh: The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Wednesday refused to grant a stay on the arrest of the trustees of Ryan International School over the murder of seven-year-old Pradhuman at its Gurugram branch in Haryana.

The court also issued a notice to the Haryana government to submit a report on the probe into the September 8 murder.

The court refused to stay the arrest of the Pinto family -- Augustine F. Pinto, his wife Grace and their son Ryan -- while taking up their application for anticipatory bail. The matter will now be heard on September 25.

The Haryana Police was investigating the crime. But Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, following a demand from the victim's family, announced last week that the probe will be taken over by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

The Pintos had approached the Punjab and Haryana High Court on Saturday, seeking anticipatory bail in the case related to the murder of the Class 2 student in the school at Bhondsi area on Sohna Road in Gurugram.

The Pinto family's anticipatory bail plea was earlier rejected by the Bombay High Court, citing jurisdiction issues.

The Bombay High Court had granted conditional interim stay on the arrest of the Pintos till 5 p.m. of September 15 to enable them to approach the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

The anticipatory bail plea came up before the Punjab and Haryana High Court here on Tuesday but a judge refused to hear the matter saying that he knew the Pinto family and referred the case to the Chief Justice for assigning it to another court.

Thomas Francis, the Regional Head of Ryan Group of Institutions who was arrested by the Haryana Police, had also moved an application for regular bail.

The district administration in Gurugram has taken over the Ryan School management for three months.

Authorities have ordered shut the school, which reopened on Monday, till September 25.