New Delhi, The Supreme Court while hearing Delhi Police appeal against the bail said that ,reading down of anti-terror law is an important issue and may have pan-India ramifications, and sought response from three student activists granted bail by the Delhi High Court in north-east Delhi riot case.
The High Court judgements will “not to be treated as precedent by any Court” to give similar reliefs, the Supreme court said.
A vacation bench comprising of Justice Hemant Gupta and Justice V Ramasubramanian made it clear however that the bails granted to these student activists will not be affected for the time being.
Taking note of Solicitor General Tushar Mehta’s submission that the entire anti-terror law, UAPA, has been turned upside down by the Delhi High Court while granting bail to these activists, the bench said what is troubling it was that 100 pages of the verdict have been rendered while granting bail and judgement discussed the entire law.
The High Court had on June 15 granted bail to JNU students Natasha Narwal and Devangana Kalita and Jamia student Asif Iqbal Tanha saying that in anxiety to suppress dissent the State has blurred the line between the right to protest and terrorist activity and if such a mindset gains traction, it would be a “sad day for democracy”.
The high court, in three separate judgments, set aside the trial court’s orders denying bail to student activists and allowed their appeals by admitting them to regular bail on furnishing a personal bond of Rs 50,000 each along with two sureties of the like amount.
– queries –
1. what is Vacation Bench ?
Ans. – A Vacation Bench of the Supreme Court is a special bench constituted by the Chief Justice of India. The court takes two long vacations each year, the summer and winter breaks, but is technically not fully closed during these periods.
2. what is pan ?
Ans. – PAN stands for “Presence Across Nation”. The meaning of the word “pan” is “including the whole of something,” which makes pan-India, including the whole of India.