This is an archive article published on March 19, 2016
JNU students Umar Khalid, Anirban Bhattacharya get bail: ‘Educated, have no criminal record,’ says Judge
The sessions court asked the accused to furnish a personal bond of Rs 25,000 each along with surety worth the same amount. Both were furnished by JNU faculty members Rajat Dutta and Sangeeta Dasgupta.
JNU sedition case: JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar, seen here celebrating after the order on Friday, said the bail proves the country has still not been completely saffronised. (Express photo)
A sessions court on Friday granted six-month interim bail to JNU students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya, who were charged with sedition by Delhi Police, with the judge stating that the accused are “highly educated”, have graduated from “premier colleges” and have “no previous criminal record”.
Additional sessions judge Reetesh Singh rejected the argument of the Delhi Police Special Cell that allegations against the duo were different from those against co-accused and JNU students’ union leader Kanhaiya Kumar. Bail for the two was being granted on “ground of parity”, he stated.
Khalid and Bhattacharya were released from custody late on Friday and reached the JNU campus to a rousing welcome from students.
Kumar, who was granted interim bail for six months on March 2, Khalid and Bhattacharya were arrested for their alleged role in organising a protest in JNU — against the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru — during which “anti-national” slogans were allegedly raised.
“…keeping in view that no previous criminal record of any nature whatsoever has been alleged and the fact that nothing has been brought on record which could indicate that they are likely to abscond from the jurisdiction of the court… I deem it appropriate to release both the accused on interim bail for a period of six months,” said ASJ Singh, referring to Khalid and Bhattacharya.
JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar and others celebrate on the JNU campus on Friday. (Express photo)
“Both present accused are highly educated persons. They have graduated from premier colleges of Delhi University, completed their MA and MPhil from JNU and are currently pursuing PhD programme from JNU…Their credentials and family background as stated in their bail applications have not been contested by the state,” he added.
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The sessions court asked the accused to furnish a personal bond of Rs 25,000 each along with surety worth the same amount. Both were furnished by JNU faculty members Rajat Dutta and Sangeeta Dasgupta.
The court said “it is apparent” from the status report filed by police before Delhi High Court during the bail hearing for Kumar that the “case set up… qua co-accused Kanhaiya Kumar was also of organising as well as participating in the said event” and that allegations with respect to Khalid and Bhattacharya “are similar”.
Referring to the statements of witnesses named by police, ASJ Singh said “it does not appear that the role attributed to Kanhaiya Kumar in the statements of these witnesses is any different to the allegations made against the present accused”.
ASJ Singh said that while granting bail the court has to “keep in mind” principles governing consideration of bail and that “factors to be borne in mind” include the “nature and gravity” of the accusation and “severity of punishment in the event of conviction”.
The court said that “it is clear that the law itself provides for a wide spectrum of nature and quantum of punishment” with regard to sedition. However, ASJ Singh added, “I do not wish to delve further in this regard at this stage of matter.”
On the defence’s contention that video footage relied upon by police was under question, the court said that “as claimed by police themselves, the video footage of the incident has been sent to forensic sciences laboratory. Its analysis and final report will certainly take some time.”
Kaunain Sheriff M is an award-winning investigative journalist and the National Health Editor at The Indian Express. He is the author of Johnson & Johnson Files: The Indian Secrets of a Global Giant, an investigation into one of the world’s most powerful pharmaceutical companies.
With over a decade of experience, Kaunain brings deep expertise in three areas of investigative journalism: law, health, and data. He currently leads The Indian Express newsroom’s in-depth coverage of health.
His work has earned some of the most prestigious honours in journalism, including the Ramnath Goenka Award for Excellence in Journalism, the Society of Publishers in Asia (SOPA) Award, and the Mumbai Press Club’s Red Ink Award.
Kaunain has also collaborated on major global investigations. He was part of the Implant Files project with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), which exposed malpractices in the medical device industry across the world. He also contributed to an international investigation that uncovered how a Chinese big-data firm was monitoring thousands of prominent Indian individuals and institutions in real time.
Over the years, he has reported on several high-profile criminal trials, including the Hashimpura massacre, the 2G spectrum scam, and the coal block allocation case. Within The Indian Express, he has been honoured three times with the Indian Express Excellence Award for his investigations—on the anti-Sikh riots, the Vyapam exam scam, and the abuse of the National Security Act in Uttar Pradesh. ... Read More
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JNU sedition case: JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar, seen here celebrating after the order on Friday, said the bail proves the country has still not been completely saffronised. (Express photo)
JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar and others celebrate on the JNU campus on Friday. (Express photo)
