Mohammad Alam, a cab driver from Delhi arrested in October 2020 in the Hathras UAPA Case was granted bail on Tuesday by the Allahabad High Court.
Alam was arrested along with journalist Siddique Kappan, Campus Front of India office-bearers Atiqur Rahman and Masood Ahmad while they were on their way to Hathras in Uttar Pradesh to report on the rape and killing of a Dalit woman which had triggered nationwide outrage.
This is the first bail granted in the case. He was denied bail earlier.
Advocate Amarjeet Singh Rakhra, Bashith Muni Mishra, Sheeran Mohiuddin
Alavi and Saipan Shaikh appeared for Alam in court.
Speaking to The Cognate, his wife Bushra Alam said, “He is innocent since
day one, I was very hopeful that the court will do justice with him.”
“He was only carrying the passengers in his car, as this was his work to feed
the family”, she said.
“We have spent a very hard time without him, there was no one to look after
our family but now we are happy that with Allah’s will he will be with us”.
She also said, “No one can ever compensate for his absence or the time he spent
in jail that too without committing any crime”.
On asking about others who are co-accused in the same case she said, “May
Allah give sabr to their families. If they are innocent, they will be released
sooner or later”.
“We are simple people, we don’t know any politics, they made us a target only
because we are Muslims, I have been saying this”, she said with contentment
in her voice.
