Operation Dudula leader, Nhlanhla ‘Lux’ Dlamini, has been granted bail.

Operation Dudula leader, Nhlanhla ‘Lux’ Dlamini, has been granted bail of R1 500 by the Roodepoort Magistrate’s Court.

Dlamini appeared in the Roodepoort Magistrate’s Court on charges of housebreaking, theft and defeating the ends of justice.

Earlier, a large crowd of his supporters demonstrated outside court over what they said was his unfair arrest.

The charges are in connection with an incident this month in which he and Operation Dudula members ransacked Soweto resident Victor Ramerafe’s home in search of drugs.

Ramorafe claimed members of Dudula stormed his home and assaulted him after accusing him of being a drug dealer.

As part of his bail conditions, Dlamini is not allowed to make contact with the complainant. He has also been ordered to hand over his passport.

The court acceded to these requests.

The court was initially going to order he be confined to Gauteng while on bail, but Dlamini’s legal representative objected to this on the grounds that Police Minister Bheki Cele has apparently invited him to travel the country “educating” others.

Dlamini became a household name last year, when he was lauded for leading the defence of Maponya Mall during the violent looting that erupted in the wake of former president Jacob Zuma’s incarceration.

He is expected back in court on 27 May 2022.

National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson, Phindi Mjonondwana, said the state did not oppose his release on bail as they had no grounds to do so.

She dismissed assertions from some quarters that the charges are politically motivated.

“Prosecutorial decisions are not politically motivated. We had a docket before us and decided to prosecute,” she said.