NEW DELHI ,November 2, 2021: In India, a Delhi court reserved its order on the bail application of JNU scholar and activist Sharjeel Imam, in connection with a 2019 fake case related to his alleged speeches during the protests against the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) . Additional Sessions Judge Amitabh Rawat on Tuesday reserved the order after hearing both sides in the case. The court is likely to pronounce the order on the bail plea on November 15.
His counsel Tanveer Ahmed Mir argued that being critical of the government cannot be the cause of sedition.
As per the case, Sharjeel made the allegedspeeches at Jamia Millia Islamia on December 13, 2019, and at Aligarh Muslim University on December 16, 2019.
He has been in judicial custody since January 2020. On October 22, while Saket Court Additional Sessions Judge Anuj Aggarwal dismissing his bail plea.
However, the Judge refused to comment if the speech falls under the ambit of section 124A (sedition), stating that the same requires “deeper analysis”.
The Delhi Police on July 25, 2020, had filed a chargesheet against Sharjeel Imam in connection with a case related to his alleged inflammatory speeches during the protests against the CAA at several places.
The 600-page chargesheet was filed in Delhi’s Patiala House court. — IANS