Siddique Kappan has been in jail for more than a month and his wife and their lawyers say they have not been given permission to meet with him.
Senior defender Kapil Sibal cited the case of Delhi-based journalist Siddique Kappan on Wednesday to point to the disparity in relief given to journalists currently in jail. Kapil Sibal represented the government of Maharashtra during the bail hearing of Republic TV editor-in-chief Arnab Goswami, who was arrested a week ago on charges of complicity in suicide. The Supreme Court granted Arnab a provisional bond, while observing that personal liberty must be respected. However, during the hearing, arguing against granting him bail, Sibal noted that when Sidhique had approached the Supreme Court, the supreme court had asked him to address a lower court.
“A journalist from Kerala was arrested by the Uttar Pradesh police when he was going to Hathras to report. We came to this court under Article 32 (the right to move to the Supreme Court through the appropriate procedures). The court said, go to the lower court, and the petition was posted for an additional hearing after four weeks. These things are also happening, ”Sibal said, according to a Live Law report.
Kapil Sibal mentions the Siddique Kappan case.
UP police arrested a journalist from Kerala when he was going to Hathras to report. We came to this Court pursuant to Article 32. The Court said to go to the lower court. Petition posted after four weeks. These things are also happening ‘
– Live Law (@LiveLawIndia) November 11, 2020
Arnab had transferred to the Supreme Court after the Bombay Supreme Court denied him bail in the 2018 suicide incitement case and asked the Alibaug court to approve an order within four days. The Alibaug court was scheduled to pass orders Thursday on his regular bail bond, but his case was taken up by a vacation court of Justices DY Chandrachud and Indira Banerjee.
Earlier during the hearing, Judge Chandrachud said that the court was not pleased that the High Courts rejected bail when the person in custody was entitled to bail, and these cases end up being sent to the Supreme Court, which is already loaded with a lot of workload. “We must send a message today also to the higher courts. Exercise your jurisdiction to defend personal freedom. In case after case, the higher courts are denying personal freedom, ”said Judge Chandrachud.
Read also: ‘We are on the path of destroying freedom, the court has to intervene’: SC in Arnab’s bail statement
Siddique Kappan has been in jail for over a month and his wife and lawyers say they have not been given permission to meet or speak with him. His wife Raihanath recently told the media that he was able to speak briefly with his elderly mother.
Siddique Kappan is a Delhi-based freelance journalist for a Malayalam online news website. In the early hours of October 5, Sidhique headed to Hathras to report the incident in which a Dalit woman was allegedly gang-raped by four upper-caste men. Three other men, Atiq-ur Rehman, Masood Ahmed and Alam, were traveling with him in the vehicle. However, the Uttar Pradesh police stopped his vehicle, confiscated Siddique’s laptop and phone and some posts claiming that “it could affect the peace in the area”.
Police initially alleged that they had links to the Popular Front of India (PFI). They were then booked by Mathura police on charges of sedition and the strict Illegal Activity (Prevention) Act (UAPA). According to the FIR, there was a larger conspiracy behind his visit to Hathras.
Siddique has not submitted any request for bail so far. He is still in judicial custody. A Mathura court recently deferred a request from the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) for police custody.
Read also: Arnab Goswami Gets Bail From Supreme Court After One Week In Custody
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