Now Reading: UK court denies bail to lawyer Vijay Aggarwal
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UK court denies bail to lawyer Vijay Aggarwal
A UK judge on Wednesday denied bail to Indian lawyer Vijay Aggarwal, accused of sexually assaulting women and facilitating travel for sexual exploitation. The court cited a major flight risk because his…
A UK judge on Wednesday denied bail to Indian lawyer Vijay Aggarwal, accused of sexually assaulting women and facilitating travel for sexual exploitation. The court cited a major flight risk because his family, business and life are in India, and said extradition would not be straightforward.
The Times of India reports that prosecutors allege Aggarwal used job adverts to draw women to a Mayfair property between May and August. Four sexual assault charges were before the court, with additional charges and possession of £30,000 allegedly linked to criminal conduct added on Wednesday. Times Now reports the four assault charges and says Aggarwal’s assistant, Manpreet Kaur, faces two related charges. Her hearing was delayed after a prison administrative error. A plea hearing is due later this year, with trial scheduled for March 2027.
Indian Opinion Analysis
The Times of India gives fuller weight to the prosecution case, the alleged recruitment pattern and the judge’s reasoning, while Times Now foregrounds Aggarwal’s connection to Mehul Choksi and provides less detail on the newer charges. The accounts also differ on the judge’s first name, identifying him as Alexander Milne and John Milne. Both agree that flight risk drove the decision, but neither account establishes guilt, which will be tested at trial. The next formal steps are the delayed arraignment and the plea hearing later this year, followed by the March 2027 trial.
Coverage: 2 sources, 2 neutral
Sources (2): timesofindia.indiatimes.com (neutral report), timesnownews.com (neutral report)
This brief was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above, so one read covers every framing they carry.
