The Supreme Court on Friday has directed the Delhi Government to respond to a plea by anti CAA activist Sharjeel Imam seeking multiple FIR that levelled seditions charged against him for making inflammatory speeches be clubbed together.
A Bench of Justices Ashok Bhushan and Sanjiv Khanna directed the government to respond to the plea within ten days.
Sidhharth Dave, Senior Advocate, appearing for Imam, submitted that all five FIR’s registered by different states alleging were based on two speech given by him. The counsel referred to indulgence shown by Supreme Court in case of Arnab Goswami, Editor-in Chief of Republic TV.
Imam is facing charges of sedition and other grave crimes. Currently, Sharjeel Imam is lodged in Guwahati jail. 5 FIR’s have been registered against him in different States for involvement in violence at Jamia on December 13 and 15, 2019 for instigating and abetting riots, due to his seditious speech on December 13 and for a speech he made Aligarh Muslim University against Citizenship Amendment Act on January 15.
Imam, who was previously one of organisers of Citizenship Amendment Act protest at Shaheen Bagh is facing sedition charges under Sections 124 and 153-A including Section 13, UAPA.
On April 25, a Delhi Court extended investigation period under UAPA from 90 days to 180 days meaning that detention of Imam gets extended till investigation period. Delhi’s crime branch while seeking extension had sought more time on ground that anti-coronavirus lockdown had seriously disrupted pace of investigation.
-India Legal Bureau