Investigative agencies are questioning Jawaharlal Nehru University students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya in a sedition case registered against them after they surrendered to police late on Tuesday night.
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The magistrate allowed Delhi Police to quiz them for three days.
Calling Kanhaiya and the other two, political prisoners, the students also raised slogans against Minister of Human Resource Development Smriti Irani and the Delhi Police.
Lawyers of Khalid and Bhattacharya provided the details to Justice Rani, and the court then asked the deputy commissioner of police, present there, about his views, but he objected to it. Thereafter, she called the police officer and petitioners’ counsel to her chamber.
“I would like to tell the court that in the light of the status report filed by the police, there is no evidence of anti-India slogans raised by Kanhaiya”. After the hearing on Kanhaiya’s bail plea commenced, additional solicitor general (ASG) Tushar Mehta told the court that police have a statutory right to take custody of an accused for 15 days.
The counsel for Delhi police contended that Kanhaiya’s further police remand was necessary for confronting the other two accused.
Jaiswal also mentioned the violent incident took place during the remand proceedings of Kanhaiya Kumar, where lawyers attacked him, JNU student and teachers and journalists.
The police report said Kanhaiya, if released on bail, “may influence the witnesses and also hamper the investigation”.
The duo were taken to a police station near the campus and questioned before being arrested. Treading cautiously, Delhi Police chief B S Bassi had asked the accused students to surrender and join the probe.
The bench said Kanhaiya Kumar’s counsel has apprehended serious threat to his client’s life during production before the court for remand proceedings and for this reason, his bail plea was transmitted to the High Court by the Supreme Court.
BJP MLA OP Sharma, seen on camera assaulting CPI leader Ameeque Jamai outside Patiala House court, was also granted bail within half an hour of his arrest on 18 February. While Yashpal Singh was arrested yeaterday before being granted bail, Vikram Chauhan was arrested by cops today. However, the arrest of the JNU students “under a rather archaic sedition law” was worrisome according to them.
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India’s Parliament was due to discuss the row on Wednesday after opposition parties demanded a debate on the issue.
