Campus Front of India (CFI) former general secretary Rauf Shareef has been granted permission by the Lucknow Bench of Allahabad High Court to appear in the MA (political science) exam conducted by IGNOU.
Shareef has been languishing in Lucknow District Jail in Uttar Pradesh for the past 21 months under the draconian Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in cases related to the Hathras gang rape case. He has been pursuing MA in political science from inside the prison.
Shareef had approached the special court for PMLA in Lucknow seeking permission to appear in the examination, which is scheduled for 24 August. The court allowed his petition on 5 August and directed the jail authorities to facilitate the same. However, Shareef’s counsel stated the jail authorities declined his request stating that no such provision exists in the jail manual.
Shareef then approached the Lucknow Bench of Allahabad High Court, which granted him permission to appear in the exam. The court also directed the Jail Superintendent to facilitate and take all the steps that are required for permitting him to appear in the examination within the premises of the Model Jail in Lucknow.
Shareef, a prominent student leader was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) under sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in December 2020 for allegedly funding the trip of Siddique Kappan, a Delhi-based Kerala journalist, and three others to Hathras in Uttar Pradesh, where a Dalit woman died after being gang-raped by four upper-caste men.
In April last year, he tested positive for COVID-19.
