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What TV doesn't, print can't; we deliver.
NEW DELHI: A court in Delhi on Friday granted bail to Alt News co-founder Mohammad Zubair in a case registered here for allegedly hurting religious sentiments. The court observed that Delhi Police has failed to establish the identity of the said Twitter user who felt offended by the tweet of the accused.
Additional Sessions Judge Devender Kumar Jangala of Patiala House Courts has granted bail to him. Earlier, his bail plea was rejected by Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Snigdha Sarvaria on July 2.
Zubair was arrested by Delhi Police Special cell on June 27 in connection with his 2018 tweet.
While granting the bail, the court observed that the words “Before 2014 and After 2014” point toward a political party. “In Indian democracy, the political parties are open for their criticism…The voice of dissent is necessary for healthy democracy…therefore, merely for the criticism of any political parties it is not justified to invoke section 153A and 295A IPC,” the court said in the order.
The court further observed that the FIR was registered when a Twitter user tagged Delhi Police complaining that his feelings have been hurt by the tweet of the accused. “…till today the police has failed to establish the identity of a said Twitter user who felt offended by the tweet of the accused,” said the court.
It also said the alleged tweet of Zubair was made in 2018 but till the date of the registration of the present FIR in 2022 no other complaint was received that the tweet of the accused is offensive to the Hindu community or showed disrespect to Lord Hanuman.
On the allegations of taking money from 13 countries in the name of donation, the court observed that “the material placed on record by the accused prima facie shows due diligence taken by him as per section 39 of FCRA.”
On the other hand, he was facing six cases in Uttar Pradesh. On Thursday, he was produced before a court in UP Hathras from where he was sent for 14 days of judicial custody. He will remain in the UP jail as of now. Zubair, however, has filed a petition before the Supreme court for quashing all the six FIRs of UP.
