NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court agreed to hear on Tuesday the plea challenging the arrest of journalist Prashant Kanojia, who has been accused by the UP police of making objectionable comments on social media against UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath.
Challenging the action of the state police, the journalist’s wife, Jagisha Arora, approached the apex court.
Appearing before a vacation bench of Justices Indira Banerjee and Ajay Rastogi, her lawyer Nitya Ramakrishnan pleaded for an urgent hearing, saying the arrest was illegal and arbitrary. Kanojia was picked up by Lucknow police’s cyber cell from his Delhi residence on June 8 and was taken to Lucknow. An FIR was registered against Kanojia by Ashok Gupta, sub-inspector at Hazratganj police station in Lucknow.
The FIR said that Kanojia had posted the message in order to malign the CM’s image.
It’s a bailable offence: Petition
The journalist was unceremoniously taken away by men in civil dress on June 8 from his Delhi residence. It transpires that on June 7, police officials of Hazaratganj police station at Lucknow had lodged an FIR against him under sections 500 (criminal defamation) of the IPC and 66 of the Information Technology Act and both offences are bailable,” the plea said. Police were bound to release Kanojia in Delhi itself as per CrPC provisions as offences alleged were bailable, the petition said. “No arrest memo was prepared and neither the petitioner nor her husband was told as to why he was being taken and why the ‘arresting officials’ were in civil dress,” it said.
Challenging the action of the state police, the journalist’s wife, Jagisha Arora, approached the apex court.
Appearing before a vacation bench of Justices Indira Banerjee and Ajay Rastogi, her lawyer Nitya Ramakrishnan pleaded for an urgent hearing, saying the arrest was illegal and arbitrary. Kanojia was picked up by Lucknow police’s cyber cell from his Delhi residence on June 8 and was taken to Lucknow. An FIR was registered against Kanojia by Ashok Gupta, sub-inspector at Hazratganj police station in Lucknow.
The FIR said that Kanojia had posted the message in order to malign the CM’s image.
It’s a bailable offence: Petition
The journalist was unceremoniously taken away by men in civil dress on June 8 from his Delhi residence. It transpires that on June 7, police officials of Hazaratganj police station at Lucknow had lodged an FIR against him under sections 500 (criminal defamation) of the IPC and 66 of the Information Technology Act and both offences are bailable,” the plea said. Police were bound to release Kanojia in Delhi itself as per CrPC provisions as offences alleged were bailable, the petition said. “No arrest memo was prepared and neither the petitioner nor her husband was told as to why he was being taken and why the ‘arresting officials’ were in civil dress,” it said.
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