A court on Friday refused to entertain the bail plea of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student and activist Sharjeel Imam related to his alleged inflammatory speeches against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in 2019. was in the case.
Dismissing the petition, Additional Sessions Judge Anuj Agrawal of Saket Court observed that the tone and tone of the incendiary speech has a debilitating effect on public peace, tranquility and harmony.
Quoting a quote from Swami Vivekananda, Justice Agrawal observed: “We are what our thoughts have made us; therefore be mindful of what you think; words are secondary; thoughts remain; they travel far We do.”
Earlier, his lawyer Tanveer Ahmed Mir had argued that criticizing the government cannot be a reason for sedition.
The judge, however, declined to comment on whether the speech came under the purview of Section 124A (sedition), saying it required a “deeper analysis”.
According to the case, Sharjeel made alleged inflammatory speeches at Jamia Millia Islamia on December 13, 2019 and at Aligarh Muslim University on December 16, 2019.
He is in judicial custody since January 2020. This case is related to FIR 242 registered in PS Crime Branch, New Friends Colony.
According to the prosecution, “On December 15, 2019, at around 11.15 a.m., information about the protest against the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) by the students and residents of Jamia Nagar was received at the concerned police station. It was told that the students would march towards the Parliament.
“At 2.20 pm, a large crowd of around 2,500 people armed with sticks gathered near Escort Hospital, Sarai Julena Chowk. Around 3.22 pm, despite warnings, a crowd of around 3,000 to 3,500 people started moving towards Sarai Julena village and Sujan Mahindra Road. When the crowd tried to cross the barricades put up by the police at the Surya Hotel to march towards Parliament, they were stopped from moving forward.
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