UP court acquits 12 Tablighi men accused of disobeying COVID norms

Bareilly (Uttar Pradesh): The chief judicial magistrate of Bareilly on Saturday acquitted of all charges against twelve members of the Tablighi Jamaat who were booked for 'negligence' and 'disobedience" of Covid norms fifteen months ago.

Among those acquitted are nine Thai nationals, their two translators and a caretaker of the mosque in Shahjahanpur where they were living after attending the Jamaat congregation in Delhi. The Thai nationals have been allowed to return to their home.

In early March last year, thousands of people gathered at the Nizamuddin Markaz (centre) of Tablighi Jamaat. The Union ministry of home affairs put the figure of members and primary contacts at 9,000.

The Union government later said 2,300 foreign nationals had participated in the event. The congregation ended by March 15, 2020, after which the government announced a lockdown.

The nine Thai nationals went to Shahjahanpur and put up at a mosque along with their two translators Hussain Ahmad and Abdul Sardar M.S. (both of whom were from Tamil Nadu) after the event. They, along with the caretaker of the mosque, Masiullah, were arrested on April 1.

The Thai nationals and their Indian friends were charged under sections 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), 269 (negligent act likely to spread infection of dangerous disease), 270 (malignant act likely to spread infection of dangerous disease), 271 (disobedience to quarantine rule) of the IPC and Section 3 of the Epidemic Diseases Act (disobeying regulations made under the Act).

The Thai nationals were also, separately, booked under Section 14 of The Foreigners Act (violating visa rules).

Later in November, while they were in jail, the Allahabad high court had granted them bail. Yet, the nine Thai citizens could not leave the country and stayed on in the country as their passports were with the police and they continued staying at the mosque. Neither the charges against them were dropped.

Meanwhile Milan Gupta, counsel for the Jamaat members said that the order was passed verbally on Saturday. "The judgment copy is not delivered instantly on acquittal. We have applied for it and it should be available after the court opens on Tuesday."

Earlier in January this year, the Supreme Court had allowed about 27 foreign citizens accused in connection with the Tablighi Jamaat congregation, who have been discharged from the charges to return to their home countries on giving an undertaking/bond to the registry of the top court.