Ram Bhakt Gopal who is infamous for opening fire at protestors in Delhi’s Jamia area in January 2020 has been granted bail in a hate speech case. He was arrested for making provocative comments against Muslims at a Mahapanchayat in Gurugram and allegedly called for attacks on the Muslim community.
As per the FIR registered on July 11, Gopal was booked under Sections 153A (promoting enmity on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence) and 295A (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings) of the IPC.
On July 16, Judicial Magistrate Mohammad Sageer had denied him bail, citing that the accused’s speech was “itself a form of violence” which cannot be “tolerated in any civilised society”.
However, on Monday, Additional Sessions Judge DN Bharadwaj granted bail after Gopal’s counsel referenced a Supreme Court order to stress that bail can be granted soon after arrest in cases where the maximum punishment is up to 7 years, Republic World reported.
On January 30, Sharma had opened fire at students protesting against the Citizenship Amendment Act. One student was injured in the firing. Gopal was booked under IPC Section 307 (Attempt to murder) and was sent to a correctional home by the juvenile justice board, he was released after a few months.
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Rushda Fathima Khan is the Staff Reporter for The Cognate.
