New Delhi, Oct 22 (UNI) Delhi's Saket court on Friday rejected the bail application of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student Sharjeel Imam, who was arrested for making inflammatory speeches during the agitation in the national capital against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC).

The court said that the speech by Sharjeel Imam was provocative and disturbed the peace and harmony of the society.

Court's Additional Sessions Judge Anju Aggarwal, while rejecting the bail application of Sharjeel Imam, said that the "statement of the accused on December 13, 2019, looks communal and divisive."

She said that the tone and style of this speech is provocative and it seems to disturb the social peace and harmony.

The prosecution had earlier mentioned that the violence and vandalism by a mob of about 3,000 people in Jamia Nagar area of Delhi on December 15, 2019 during the anti CAA and anti NRC agitation was on the instigation of the speech of the applicant Sharjeel Imam.

The court, however, said that there is a lot of laxity in the prosecution's story. The statement of any eyewitness or other evidence produced by the prosecution does not prove that the crowd was provoked by Imam's speech.

The court, underlining the importance of the right to freedom of expression provided in Article 19 of the Constitution, quoted the statement of the English poet John Milton that ‘Give me the liberty to know, to utter, and to argue freely according to conscience, above all liberties’. The judge underlined the importance of social harmony along with this right.

UNI MYK ACL