Sharjeel Imam Gets Bail In 2019 Sedition Case, To Remain In Jail In Pending UAPA Cases

A Delhi Court on Friday granted bail to former JNU student Sharjeel Imam in a sedition case which accused him of delivering a “provocative speech” that allegedly led to violence in the Jamia Nagar area in the 2019 Anti CAA-NRC protests.

However, Imam will continue to remain in custody as he is yet to get bail in other cases pending against him, Live Law reported.

Additional Sessions Judge Anuj Agrawal granted bail to him in FIR 242/2019 registered at the NFC Police station.

Former Supreme Court Justice Markandey Katju had come out in defence of Imam, arguing for quashing of FIRs against him, saying that “he has not committed a crime”.

Imam’s arrest was widely condemned by politicians, teachers, students, activists and other organisations.

Responding to the bail granted to Imam, Apoorvanand, a prominent lecturer at Delhi University tweeted, “There is no case against Sharjeel Imam. All are fabricated to frame him. Bail is the least that the courts can give. His incarceration is a matter of shame for us.”

The prosecution had alleged that rioters were instigated by Imam’s speech on December 13, 2019 and resorted to violence.

In October 2021, Imam was denied regular bail by a Saket Court, saying that the tone and tenor of his ‘incendiary speech’ had a debilitating effect upon public tranquility, peace and harmony of the society. 

The JNU student has been in the jail for more than two and a half years now.

The JNU Students Union said that his arrest is a matter of “Islamophobia, selective amnesia & bias” of the state apparatus. JNU Teachers’ Association alleged that the sedition charge was invoked due to “other reasons” and that it reflects “politicisation” of the conduct of law enforcement agencies.

148 students and alumni of various IITs and over a hundred students from Jamia Millia Islamia, AMU and other state universities signed a letter in his support, and alleged that a few minutes of his speech were cherry-picked to misrepresent what he said to make it appear hateful and objectionable.

A group of students hailing from Bihar and studying in prominent institutions, including JNU and IIT Delhi, wrote an open letter to RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav urging him to demand the release of Imam, highlighting Imam’s contribution as an academician, student, historian and journalist.