A Bidar Court on Tuesday granted anticipatory bail to the manager of Shaheen Primary and High School, Abdul Qadeer, as well as to the management of Shaheen School in relation to the sedition case filed in the wake of an anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) play that was staged in January.
The Court has directed that in the event these persons from the school management are arrested, they will be released on bail subject to certain conditions, on the execution of a bond of Rs. 2,00,000/- each, along with three solvent sureties of a like sum.
After taking into account the various materials placed on record, Principal District & Sessions Judge MP Mallikarjuna stated that,
"The records do not make out the presence of the accused/petitioner during the course of enacting the drama. The drama has not caused any disharmony in the society. Considering all the circumstances, I am of the opinion that the ingredients of Section 124A of IPC (Sedition) are prima facie lacking."
The Court further stated that,
"What the children have expressed is that, they will have to leave the country if they do not produce the documents and except that, there is nothing to show that, he has committed the offence of sedition. The dialogue, in my considered opinion, does not go to bring into hatred or disaffection towards the Government".
On the point of creating disharmony under Section 153A, the court stated that other than muslims, there was no mention of any other community in the play.
"There is no reference of any other community in the drama. But all the artists have said that Muslims will have to leave the country, if they do not produce the documents as required under the proposed CAA, NRC Acts. When there is no other religion in the entire drama, there is no question of causing disharmony between two religions which is the main requirement of the offence punishable".
The Court went on to add that a citizen everybody has a right to express disapprobation of the measures of the government with a view to obtain their alteration by lawful means.
The Court also noted that the dialogues were during the course of enacting a play in school. The Court further held,
"The said play has been enacted on January 21, but information has been lodged on January 26. If at all it was not uploaded on facebook, even the public could not have come to know about the dialogue of that drama."
Last month, a Bidar Court had granted bail to the Headmistress of Shaheen School and the mother of a student, both of whom were charged with sedition for the anti-CAA play conducted at the school.
The Court had directed that both women be released on a bond of Rs. 1,00,000/- each along with two sureties. Further, the Court directed them to cooperate with the investigation and appear before the Investigating Officer as and when required.
Sedition charges were framed on a complaint filed by a member of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP). The anti-CAA play staged by students of classes 4, 5 and 6 allegedly contained a dialogue that insulted Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the complaint stated.
On a related note, a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was filed before the Karnataka High Court to initiate action against the State Police for illegally examining and questioning minor students of Shaheen Education Society in Bidar over the anti-CAA play. Responding this, the State argued that the students were only counselled and not interrogated.
[Read the bail order - Abdul Qadeer]
