'He had no work in Hathras', says HC to deny journalist Kappan bail

Lucknow: A single bench of the Allahabad High Court denied bail to Kerala journalist Siddique Kappan who is currently in jail on charges of the anti-terror law.

Responding to Kappan's bail petition, the court said that a perusal of the charge sheet and documents prima facie revealed that the applicant committed the offence and added that it came up in the investigation that he had no work at Hathras.

The applicant's defence, according to the court, that he visited Hathras as part of his duty of being a journalist was nullified by the "averments' in the charge sheet and the person he was arrested with while travelling in a car. The court further said the 'tainted money' used by the applicant and his colleagues cannot be ruled out.

Siddique Kappan was on his way to report the controversial gang-rape and murder in Hathras when he was arrested in October and he is accused of attempting to disseminate the terror agenda of the banned outfit Students Islamic Movement of India - SIMI, according to NDTV.

Counsels for Siddique Kappan maintained that Kappan is innocent and he never used any platform to spread disharmony.

NDTV reported that the 5,000-page chargesheet accused Siddique Kappan of having links to SIMI, an organisation that was banned in 2001.

Meanwhile, Siddique Kappan's lawyer Wills Mathews said in a statement that to prove his innocence Kappan was willing to undergo narco analysis and brain mapping tests.

The Delhi unit of the Kerala Union of Working Journalists said in a statement that it was disappointed at the Allahabad High Court's order, saying Kappan is one of its fraternity and is in jail since October 5, 2020.

The journalists' body will reportedly challenge the order in the Supreme Court.