New Delhi: After over a month in custody, six people arrested over an anti-pollution agitation near India Gate were granted bail by a Delhi court on Friday. The court held that their continued incarceration would serve “no fruitful purpose” as they were not required for any further investigation and that the prosecution failed to show any risk of flight or witness tampering on their part.
Additional sessions judge Amit Bansal granted bail to Ilakkiya, Ayisha Wafiya Midhath, Ravjot Kaur, Gurkirat Kaur, Abhinash Satapathy and Kranti alias Priyanshu, who were arrested following the protest at Kartavya Path on Nov 23. The court recorded that it was an “admitted position” that 16 co-accused had already been granted bail. It also noted that the prosecution’s reply did not state that “any of the applicants is a member of the banned Radical Students Organisation”, which has links with Maoists. The court said the prosecution didn’t say that left-wing student and advocacy groups like Bhagat Singh Chhatra Ekta Manch and Himkhand are banned organisations. The prosecution had opposed the bail pleas, alleging that the applicants participated in the protest affiliated mainly with the two groups.It alleged that the protesters blocked traffic at C-Hexagon Road, obstructed cops from performing their duties, raised slogans unrelated to pollution and that one of the accused caused simple injuries to a police constable by using pepper spray. Some of them shouted slogans in support of slain Maoist commander Madvi Hidma, the prosecution claimed. The court directed each accused to furnish a personal bond of Rs 50,000 with one surety of the like amount, and to join the probe as and when required, while restraining them from leaving India without the court’s prior permission. Police said a total of 23 protesters had been arrested in two separate cases. With the present order, all of them have been granted bail, except one whose bail application is yet to be finalised.
