Arrest Of AltNews Co-Founder Mohammed Zubair : Delhi Court Remands Him To 4 Days Police Custody [LIVE UPDATES]

LIVELAW NEWS NETWORK

28 Jun 2022 3:38 PM IST

  • Arrest Of AltNews Co-Founder Mohammed Zubair : Delhi Court Remands Him To 4 Days Police Custody [LIVE UPDATES]

    A Delhi Magistrarte is hearing the Delhi police plea for remand of Mohammed Zubair, co-founder of fact checking website AltNews, who was arrested yesterday in a case over a tweet made in 2018 for allegedly hurting of religious sentiments.Zubair is produced before Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Snigdha Sarvaria of the Patiala House Court.Senior Advocate Vrinda Grover is appearing for...

    A Delhi Magistrarte is hearing the Delhi police plea for remand of Mohammed Zubair, co-founder of fact checking website AltNews, who was arrested yesterday in a case over a tweet made in 2018 for allegedly hurting of religious sentiments.

    Zubair is produced before Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Snigdha Sarvaria of the Patiala House Court.

    Senior Advocate Vrinda Grover is appearing for Zubair.

    Follow this page for live-updates from the hearing.

     

    Live Updates

    • 28 Jun 2022 3:48 PM IST

      Grover: Their investigation is based on a tweet. If the idea is that this man has to be harassed, law has to be abused, then yes the police is doing exactly that. You call me for a different case, arrest me in different case. 

    • 28 Jun 2022 3:48 PM IST

      Grover: Prima facie where is the case? Yes I am a fact checker. I am a journalist. I speak my mind. How is 295 even invoked in this FIR? Let me show a judgment. 

    • 28 Jun 2022 3:47 PM IST

      Grover: The first criteria that they will have to satisfy is destruction, damage or place of worship or sacred object. This is a photograph of a movie. This isn't a place of worship. This is a joke on the honeymooners. Where is the damage?

    • 28 Jun 2022 3:46 PM IST

      Grover: I'll come to why he is being targeted. And that reason is coherent of the malicious targeting of my client. 

    • 28 Jun 2022 3:45 PM IST

      Grover: The entire case borders on absurdity. Please look at the tweet now.

      Grover: Sec. 153A says one communities. What are the groups "hanuman bhakt" (the anonymous twitter handle which raised the complaint) is making? He is saying hanuman ji was bhramachari. This was a 1983 movie. This has then been applauded by many supporters. Where is the conflict?

    • 28 Jun 2022 3:45 PM IST

      Grover: That is the way social media operates. Be that as it may, its a free country, people can say whatever they want. I haven't done anything. People are in fact naming a political party and applauding. It is settled law, sec. 153A requires two communities. 


    • 28 Jun 2022 3:44 PM IST

      Grover narrates the scene from the movie to the Court. She says that the scene shows a hotel named "Honeymoon Hotel" changing its name as "Hanuman Hotel".  

      Grover: This image, today shown as a reason for arresting someone, seeking remand, comes from a Hindi cinema. This image has been shared by many others. 

      Grover: It's an old film. There are multiple Twitter handles which are applauding the fact that "honeymoon hotel" is made "hanuman hotel". Kindly see the tweets I have placed on record.

    • 28 Jun 2022 3:42 PM IST

      Grover: Submission of PP now was that I have edited the image. IFSO looking at cyber crime would have professionalism of cyber which would be way better than mine. This image is from a film "kisi se na kehna" made in 1983.

      There is no editing that the accused or anyone else has done.

    • 28 Jun 2022 3:41 PM IST

      Grover: The sections are 153A and 295 of IPC. Maximum three years and two years respectively. The tweet they are referring to is of 2018.

      Grover is now reading contents of the FIR before the Court.


       

       

    • 28 Jun 2022 3:40 PM IST

      Grover: They asked for 7 days remand. Duty Magistrate was not inclined and granted one day police remand.

      May I now read out the FIR. 

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