Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, Oct 22: Sharjeel Imam, a student and activist at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), has been denied bail on Friday in a case involving alleged provocative comments against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC).
Saket Court Additional Sessions Judge Anuj Aggarwal, who dismissed the petition said that the tone and tenor of incendiary discourse likely to have a negative effect on public serenity, peace, and concord.
Citing a quote by Swami Vivekananda, Judge Aggarwal said: “We are what our thoughts have made us; so take care about what you think; Words are secondary; Thoughts live; they travel far.”
Tanveer Ahmed Mir, his lawyer, had previously contended that criticising the government could not be considered sedition.
The Judge, however, refused to pronounce on whether the speech fell under section 124A (sedition), adding that “deeper examination” is required.
Sharjeel is accused of making provocative comments at Jamia Millia Islamia on December 13, 2019 and Aligarh Muslim University on December 16, 2019, according to the case. Since January 2020, he has been held in judicial detention.
The case stems from FIR 242, which was filed at the PS Crime Branch in New Friends Colony.
According to the prosecution, information of a demonstration against the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) by students and residents of Jamia Nagar was received at the concerned police station on December 15, 2019 at approximately 11.15 a.m. The students were expected to march towards Parliament, according to reports.
“At around 2.20 p.m., a large gathering of about 2,500 people armed with lathis assembled near Escort Hospital, Sarai Julena Chowk. At about 3.22 p.m., despite the warning, the mob consisting of around 3,000 to 3,500 people started advancing towards Sarai Julena Village and Sujan Mahindra Road. When the mob tried to cross the barricades placed by the police at Surya Hotel to march towards Parliament, they were stopped from marching ahead,” the FIR read.
