Snehal Upadhyay–
Delhi Police moves to the Supreme Court as Delhi High Court grants bail to three students Devangana Kalita and Natasha Narwal of JNU and Atif Iqbal Tanha of Jamia Milia Islamia who were involved in the Delhi riots.
The appeal from the Delhi Police mentioned that “The High Court not only conducted a mini-trial but also recorded perverse findings which are contrary to record.”
The student activists faced the charges under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 and other various provisions of the Indian Penal code.
The Court stated that the right to protest is a fundamental right and hence it could not be termed as a “Terrorist Act,” hence granting bail to the three student’s activists on June 15th.
The Court also showed its concern on fundamental rights getting infringed by commenting on the state that, “The state has blurred the line between the constitutionally guaranteed ‘right to protest’ and ‘terrorist activity’. If such blurring gains traction, democracy would be in peril.”