Delhi high court grants bail to organiser in Jantar Mantar hate slogan case

The court granted bail after noting that Preet Singh, one of the organisers of the Jantar Mantar event, was not required for custodial interrogation any more. The court directed that the petitioner be released on bail on furnishing a personal bond in the sum of ₹50,000 with two surety bonds of the like amount.

The Delhi high court on Friday granted bail to Preet Singh, one of the organisers of the event at Jantar Mantar where communal slogans were allegedly raised last month, saying his custodial interrogation in the hate speech case is not required any longer.

The Dehli high court asked the accused not to leave the country without its permission. (Picture for representation/HT Archive)

“The petitioner has been in custody since August 9, 2021. The petitioner is no more required for custodial interrogation. It is, therefore, directed that the petitioner be released on bail on furnishing a personal bond in the sum of ₹50,000 with two surety bonds of the like amount subject to the satisfaction of the learned trial court/duty magistrate,” said justice Mukta Gupta.

The judge has asked the accused not to leave the country without the court’s permission.

The court said that as per the record, during the Jantar Mantar event on August 8, the accused had left the venue at around 2pm, noting that “the main provocative words/slogans were shouted by the co-accused at around 4pm”.

It said that at this stage, it is not appropriate to express any opinion on whether the “words spoken by the petitioner make out an offence under IPC section 153A (hate speech)”, adding that it will be examined at the stage of charge or during trial.

“The interview by the petitioner was not an isolated interview and was part of simultaneous conversation with a number of speakers. Further large numbers of people gathered at the spot due to the petitioner co-organising the protest, and therefore the petitioner would be liable for any offence committed in furtherance of the common object of the assembly,” the order said.

Singh, who was remanded in judicial custody on August 10 after his arrest, is accused of creating enmity between different groups and inciting the youth to propagate against a particular religion at a rally at Jantar Mantar here on August 8.

Singh, seeking bail through his lawyer Vishnu Shankar Jain, had argued that a demand of a “Hindu Rashtra” did not amount to promoting enmity between religious groups.

On August 27, the trial court had refused bail to Singh, saying that prima facie, there had been active participation by the accused in his individual capacity and also as the main organiser of the event itself.