SRINAGAR: The J&K Police have dropped charges under Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA0 against seven students of Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology (SKUAST), who were arrested on November 20 following a complaint by a student after India’s loss to Australia in the cricket World Cup Final.
All the arrested students were also been granted interim bail till December 13 by a local court in Srinagar on Saturday. A student had complained on November 20 last that he was allegedly threatened and pro-Pakistan slogans were raised by the SKUAST students following Australia’s victory over India in the World Cup final cricket match.
A local news gathering agency reported that a senior police officer said that as the bail application came up for hearing on Saturday, December 2, 2023, in Chief Judicial Magistrate’s court at Ganderbal, the police informed that charges under UAPA against the seven have been dropped.
“Senior prosecuting officer analysed circumstances, evidences and statements on record opined that at this stage as per the evidence on record doesn’t connect the accused persons to the commission of offences 13 UAPA but the offence under section 153-A IPC is attracted in the instant case while as section 13 UAPA is dropped (sic),” the police informed the court.
“So as per investigation of the case and opinion sought from the senior prosecuting officer section 13 UAPA has been dropped from the instant case while as section 153-A IPC has been incorporated in the instant case”.
Advocate Shafiq Bhat, who represented the seven students, said all of them have been granted bail.
After police’s submission, the court granted interim bail for eleven days to the arrested students. “… the accused persons are enlarged on interim bail up to 13-12-2023,” the court said in its interim bail order.
In its order, the court said the accused persons will furnish a surety bond of Rs 25000 each, shall not indulge in any anti-national activity or prevail upon the witnesses, remain available for investigation and shall not assist or come in contact with any criminal or association of such persons.
It may be recalled that the police decision to invoke UAPA had come under criticism from former chief ministers Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti, prompting the J&K Police to issue a clarification saying that they had invoked a “softer provision” of the anti-terror law.
The police had also said it was not “merely about raising pro-Pakistan slogans” but about the “full context”, including “intimidating” and “terrorising” those who disagreed, and “normalising an abnormal”. “This abnormal and false thing is practiced mostly on the back of separatist and terrorist networks,” the state police had said.
Section 13 of the UAPA, which was invoked against the students deals with inciting or advising any unlawful activity and is punishable with seven years’ jail.
Mehbooba Mufti posted on social media ‘X’ (Formerly Twitter) in the evening, “Glad to know that UAPA charges against SKUAST students have been dropped. Finally good sense has prevailed and their future saved from jeopardy.”
The complaint against the seven had been filed by a student after a face-off between several students at the hostel.
In his complaint, the student named the seven students and claimed that after the match, they “started abusing me and targeting me for being a supporter of our country”. The students also raised pro-Pakistan slogans, “which created fear amongst the students from outside the UT of J&K…,” the complaint claimed.
Charges under IPC sections 505 (intent to incite a class or community to commit offence against any other class or community) and 506 (criminal intimidation) have also been invoked against the seven.
Criticising the police action, Mufti had sought Lt Governor Manoj Sinha’s intervention: “When they claim that the situation here is normal, why so much fear and paranoia (just because) some students have celebrated the victory of Australia… You can’t control the hearts and minds of people through guns.”
Abdullah was quoted as saying by PTI: “I don’t agree with what these students did. But having said that I also do not agree with the way police have handled this case. This will not decrease ‘dil ki duri’ as envisaged by the Prime Minister.”
Jammu and Kashmir Students Association National convener, Nasir Khuehami, took to X and said, “The UAPA charges against seven Kashmiri students have been dropped. All seven students, enrolled at (SKUAST) in Ganderbal, Kashmir, were initially arrested and charged under UAPA after Australia defeated India in the World Cup on November 19.”
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