Activist Saket Gokhale has written to the Chief Justice of Madhya Pradesh High Court urging that bail applications moved by stand-up comic Munawar Faruqui and three others accused of insulting Hindu deities should be heard by a Bench other than Justice Rohit Arya in the interest of justice and fairness.
Gokhale’s letter raises various concerns over certain oral remarks reportedly made by Justice Arya during Monday’s hearing carrying a presumption of guilt on the part of the accused even before a trial has begun. The letter also said Justice Arya has not given an impression of fairness or impartiality on the part of the Bench.
In his letter, Gokhale alleged that the bench did not cite any reasons as to why it was disinclined to entertain the bail application. “In the event that the bench believes it might not be able to adjudicate fairly in the matter for whatever reasons, the Hon’ble Justice should’ve recused himself from hearing the bail applications,” Gokhale said. He said there is a valid impression created among the general public that the accused are not getting a fair non-prejudiced hearing in their bail application.
Apart from these statements indicating a presumption already made against the accused, Gokhale submitted that Justice Arya ought to have recused from hearing the matter if he felt that he would not be able to adjudicate fairly in the matter for whatever reasons.
Gokhale also highlighted that a Station House Officer had earlier told a media outlet on January 4 that there was nothing incriminating found in the video footage submitted by the complainant against the accused. Further, it pointed out that the police had failed to produce their case diary in an earlier bail hearing before the High Court and also submitted that they had no documentary evidence to back the alleged charges of hurting religious sentiments.
The repeated submissions of the Police about the lack of prima facie evidence supporting the charges against the accused, coupled with their rush to arrest them based on a complaint by a politically inclined complainant, ‘raises questions on whether the Indore Police is acting under political pressure’, the letter claims.
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Faruqui was arrested on allegations that he made derogatory remarks against Hindu deities during a recent stand-up show. A complaint to this effect was reportedly filed by Eklavya Singh Gaur, chief of Hindu Rakshak, local right wing Hindu outfit. Working on the application filed by Gaur, the Indore bench of Madhya Pradesh High Court on Monday reserved orders on the bail application moved by the accused.
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