Now Reading: Mumbai Court Denies Bail To TISS Student For Slogans To Free Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam
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Mumbai Court Denies Bail To TISS Student For Slogans To Free Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam
Mumbai Court Denies Bail To TISS Student For Slogans To Free Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam
A Mumbai sessions court on August 7 denied anticipatory bail to Abhirup Paul, a TISS student, for raising slogans demanding the release of Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam at an event paying…
The Story in Brief
A Mumbai sessions court on August 7 denied anticipatory bail to Abhirup Paul, a TISS student, for raising slogans demanding the release of Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam at an event paying homage to GN Saibaba. Judge VB Bohra noted the Supreme Court had denied bail to the two men, who face trial under the UAPA, and said students must respect the law. The court, however, granted bail to another student, Nikita Dsouza.
The judge took exception to slogans like 'Rest in Power' and the discovery of downloaded books by CPI (Maoist) authors on Paul's phone, though they are not banned. Custodial interrogation was needed, the judge held, to ascertain any link with a banned organisation acting against India's interest.
The Indian Opinion
Both sides have exaggerated this case into a free-speech versus national-security showdown. But the judge made a fine distinction: paying homage to an acquitted professor is legal; raising slogans for two men the Supreme Court refused bail to is not. The supposed Maoist books found on the student's phone are not banned, yet they reportedly discuss 'division of country.' The real test is whether the investigation uncovers any actual link to a banned organisation, that alone will tell if this is a criminal conspiracy or just intemperate campus activism.
Source: livelaw.in
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
