Anushka Shrma-
Published On: October 28, 2021 at 14:30 IST
On Thursday, October 28, the Supreme Court upheld the judgement of the Special NIA Court in Kochi, awarding Bail to Kerala youngsters Thwaha Fasal and Allan Shuhaib in an Unlawful (Activities) Prevention Act case involving alleged Maoist ties.
The Supreme Court has allowed Fasal’s appeal and dismissed the appeal filed by the National Investigating Agency. Fasal’s appeal has been allowed, and the High Court’s January 2021 judgement, which reversed his Bail, has been set aside, according to Justice Oka, who read the operative portion of the judgement.
The Union of India’s Appeal against Shuhaib’s Bail is also dismissed, and the Trial Court’s Bail ruling is upheld.
The Kerala High Court also overturned the Trial Court’s decision that there was no Prima Facie case against the defendants. For the purposes of determining Bail, the Trial Court went beyond the bounds of a Prima Facie investigation, according to the High Court.
The Court went on to say that simply having literature on Communist ideology, Maoism, and class struggle does not indicate anything negative about the accused.
“It becomes adverse only when there is any positive act from the side of the accused to instigate violence. Prima Facie, there is nothing to suggest any overt act on the side of the accused in this regard,” the Court stated.
The Defendants were detained in November 2019 by Kerala police under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, allegedly for assisting proscribed Maoist outfits that have been designated as terrorist organisations. Later, the NIA took up the investigation.
Also Read: What is the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967?