A Bengaluru court on Thursday granted bail to college student Amulya Leona Noronha, who was accused of sedition after she said 'Pakistan zindabad' at an anti-Citizenship Act (CAA) rally on 20 February, reports NDTV.
On Wednesday, Leona was denied bail as the court had observed that Amulya may engage in similar offenses that may hamper peace at large and may also abscond if released.
But after almost four months, the journalism student has been granted bail. Amulya's advocate, Prasanna R, told NDTV that the delay of the state in submitting a chargesheet in the case beyond the stipulated time meant she was eligible for "default bail".
On 20 February, Amulya had raised 'Pakistan zindabad' slogan at an anti-CAA rally organised by AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi in Bengaluru. ANI
"The default bail application was moved before the magistrate under whose jurisdiction the alleged crime was committed. The chargesheet has not been submitted by the state within 90 days. So default bail has been granted. We had moved the default bail plea on 26 May and again on 29 May when the court told us the earlier mail IDs had been disabled. A physical application was filed on 2 June. The state filed the chargesheet on 3 June," the lawyer told the publication.
Amulya's bail plea had been delayed because of the coronavirus-induced nationwide lockdown. The Bengaluru Police did not file a chargesheet against the 19-year-old student during the lockdown, according to The Indian Express.
On 20 February, earlier this year, Amulya had raised 'Pakistan zindabad' slogan at an anti-CAA rally organised by AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi in Bengaluru. A case was almost immediately registered against her under Section 124A (Offence of sedition) of the Indian Penal Code.
The organisers had invited her to address the gathering soon after Owaisi came on stage. Later on, Owaisi, who addressed the gathering later, said he did not agree with the woman, whom he described as "so-called liberal".
In one of her Facebook posts on 16 February, Amulya had hailed all south Asian countries, including Pakistan. She said that every citizen of a country is entitled to basic benefits and rights and that the government is responsible for every one of them equally.
from Firstpost India Latest News https://ift.tt/2MLe2o0
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