“Unity of India is not made of bamboo reeds which will bend to the passing winds of empty slogans,” Allahabad HC observed.
Team Clarion
NEW DELHI – The Allahabad High Court has granted bail to three Kashmiri students who were jailed in October on sedition charges after they celebrated the victory of Pakistan over India in the T20 Cricket World Cup.
While granting bail to the three students – Inayat altaf, Arshid and Showkat Ganai – Justice Ajay Bhanot pointedly observed that “unity of India is not made of bamboo reeds which will bend to the passing winds of empty slogans.”
The order found that the bail application holds merit and the submission made by the counsel of the applicants could not be satisfactorily disputed.
The police had alleged that the trio raised pro-Pakistan and anti-India slogans after Pakistan’s win in the cricket match. They also made like posts on social media and instigated civil disorder in the country, the FIR alleged, charging them with sedition.
The court also observed that students’ traveling freely to different parts of the country in the quest for knowledge is a true celebration of India’s diversity and a vivid manifestation of India’s unity.
The order also quoted a couplet from Taraana Hind written by renowned Urdu poet Alama Iqbal:
kuchh baat hai ki hastī miTtī nahīñ hamārī
sadiyoñ rahā hai dushman daur-e-zamāñ hamārā
saare jahāñ se achchhā hindostāñ hamārā
Meanwhile, the Jammu Kashmir Students Association (JKSA), which was assisting the families of the three students in their pursuit for justice, welcomed the bail order.
“The fact that these students were framed under charges which as per the defence, were prima facie not only arbitrary but were equally harsh. The trio has suffered a great deal from being roughed up at Agra Sessions court to facing recurrent delays in hearing of their case at Agra”. Since now they have bailed out, it has restored and reposed the faith of common man in judiciary” said Nasir Khuehami, group’s spokesperson.
The group said the bail order “has restored and reposed the faith of common man in judiciary” adding it will pave the way for enabling a safe environment for Kashmir students living in different parts of mainland India.
