Supreme Court To Hear Siddique Kappan’s Plea Seeking Relaxation of Bail Condition After Two Weeks

Kerala journalist Siddique Kappan moved to the Supreme Court seeking relaxation of the bail condition, that he should record his presence at the police station in Uttar Pradesh every Monday. He was granted in the Hathras Conspiracy case after 2 years of incarceration. Today (September 17, 2024), the Supreme Court (SC) of India sought a response from the Uttar Pradesh Government and posted the matter for hearing after two weeks. The two-judge bench of Justice PS Narasimha and Justice R Mahadevan will hear Siddique Kappan’s plea regarding the relaxation of bail condition. 

In September 2022, the SC bench constituting former Chief Justice of India UU Lalit and Justice S Ravindra Bhat granted bail to Kappan who had been in custody since October 6, 2020, under Sections 17/18 of Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, Sections 120B, 153A/295A IPC, 65/72 IT Act. The bail conditions imposed on Kappan were as follows:

• “The appellant shall be taken to the trial court within 3 days and shall be released on bail on conditions as deemed fit by the trial court.
• It shall be the condition of bail that the appellant shall stay within the jurisdiction of Jangpura in Delhi.
• The appellant shall not leave the jurisdiction of Delhi without the express permission of trial court.
• The appellant shall record his presence in local police station every Monday. This condition shall apply for first 6 weeks. After 6 weeks, the appellant shall be at liberty to go to Kerala but shall report to the local police station in similar fashion, that is every Monday, and mark his presence in the register kept on that behalf.
• The appellant shall either in person or through lawyer shall attend the trial court on every single day.
• The appellant shall deposit his passport with the investigative machinery. The appellant shall not misuse the liberty and shall not get in touch with any of the person connected with the controversy.”

Siddique Kappan, a reporter for Malayalam news portal Azhimukham and secretary of the Delhi unit of Kerala Union of Working Journalists (KUWJ), was arrested in October 2020 while he was on his way to Hathras to report on the gangrape-murder of a Dalit minor girl. The prosecution's case was that Kappan was traveling to Hathras intending to disturb harmony in the area. He was also booked for an offence under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). In December 2022, the Allahabad HC granted him bail in the PMLA case, and walked out of jail in February 2023.