Former Delhi University professor S.A.R.
Former Delhi University professor S.A.R. Geelani, facing sedation charges for allegedly organising an event at the Press Club of India to mark the death anniversary of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru, was on Friday denied bail by the court.
Mr Geelani, presently in judicial custody till March 3, is lodged in “high-risk ward” of Tihar Jail. Mr Geelani through his defence counsel Satish Tamta had moved a bail application before the court of metropolitan magistrate Harvinder Singh. Advocate Satish Tamta told the court that the police was relying on clips of news channels and CCTV footage recording of the Press Club of India. “Since the applicant/accused along with 20-25 other youth were raising anti-national slogans, slogans for azadi (freedom) of Kashmir and were raising slogans hailing Maqbool Bhatt and Afzal Guru as martyrs who were convicted and executed..., it can be inferred from the slogans raised by the applicant/ accused along with 20-25 other youth that they intended to bring Government of India into contempt with likelihood of eruption of violence and public disorder... Hence this court do not find force in the submissions of the counsel for accused that even prima facie case for offence punishable under Section 124A of IPC is not attracted in this matter... Therefore the application of grant of bail is hereby rejected,” the judge said.
The move was opposed by the Delhi police which said that the offences against Mr Geelani were grave and there was apprehension that he might try to influence the investigation and tamper with the evidence if released on bail. “The investigation is at the preliminary stage and (Mr) Geelani might influence prosecution witnesses and other. He can also hamper our investigation,” the police argued, opposing his bail plea.
The police counsel also alleged that “there has been incitement and hatred generated against the Government of India. The entire purpose of the event was to create disloyalty among the people of India.”
The police also claimed that Mr Geelani was not cooperating with the probe and not revealing the whereabouts of the others involved in booking the conference hall where the event was held.
Mr Gilani also alleged in the court that the police had tampered with his mobile phone during the investigation. He said that after arresting him on February 16, the police had taken away his mobile phone and other belongings from him.
He claimed that on February 17, the police asked him to unlock his seized phone for the purpose of investigation and he apprehend that they may have tampered with his call records.
“We wanted to bring it to the notice of the court that the investigating officer seized Gilani’s phone and sealed it. However, a day after he was asked to unlock his phone, it was not sealed,” Mr Tamta said.
