Alt News co-founder Zubair’s police custody extended by four days


The Hindu

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Alt News co-founder Zubair’s police custody extended by four days  

A Delhi court on Tuesday granted four-day police custody of fact-checking website Alt News co-founder Mohammed Zubair to Delhi Police’s Special Cell in a case related to an “objectionable tweet” he had posted in 2018 against a Hindu deity. Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Snigdha Sarvaria passed the order after hearing arguments from Delhi police as well as the accused.

While arguing for his custody, the Delhi Police alleged that Zubair had brought a “blank phone” for questioning, from which apps like Twitter had been deleted. The police further alleged that Zubair had threatened the police that “all material in the laptop would be deleted if anything were to happen to him”.
Alt News co-founder Mohammed Zubair sits in a police vehicle after he was produced in a court in New Delhi on June 28, 2022.

The court also allowed the police to take Zubair to Bengaluru and recover his mobile phone and laptop from his home. The police submitted that Zubair had allegedly “edited” the photo in the tweet, to which Zubair’s counsel Vrinda Grover said the photo was not tampered with in any way and that it was a still from a 1983 film ‘Kisi Se Na Kehna’. The court dismissed this argument of Zubair’s counsel at this stage. It said the submission that the tweet in question was part of a CBFC approved film “is of no assistance to the accused at this stage”.

The Delhi Police pressed for permission to seize the laptop and mobile phone of Zubair that was used when the tweet in question was posted. Grover, however, submitted that none of his tweets had been posted through the laptop and that the phone with which the 2018 tweet was posted had been stolen. Grover added that even the Delhi Police had acknowledged in court submissions that the phone they are seeking to seize had been stolen.

Police had sought an extension of Zubair’s custody by five days. Earlier on Monday night, Zubair was arrested by the Delhi Police’s IFSO unit, resulting in backlash from various political leaders, journalists and social activists.
‘Absolute hypocrisy,’ say activists on Zubair’s arrest as India commits to freedom of speech at G7 meet

Condemning the arrest of Alt News co-founder Mohammed Zubair, a group of activists on Tuesday said it was “absolute hypocrisy” of the government that his arrest came on a day India committed at the G7 Summit to defend democratic principles and protect the freedom of expression.

Zubair was arrested by the Delhi Police on Monday for allegedly hurting religious sentiments through one of his tweets posted in 2018. His arrest came days after the Gujarat authorities arrested Teesta Setalvad on the charges of “criminal conspiracy, forgery and placing false evidence in court to frame innocent people” in the 2002 Gujarat riots.

Criticising the arrests, All India Progressive Women’s Association member Kavita Krishnan alleged it was “absolute hypocrisy” of the Prime Minister to “use the Constitution of India as window dressing” while he is acting in revenge against activists and journalists who is holding his party accountable.

“I expect more from leaders of world democracies and the international media. When Modi goes to an international stage, he should be asked about his treatment of journalists and activists in India. I find it wrong if he is given a free pass when he talks about democracy in India...,” she told PTI.

She also referred to the treatment of India’s Muslim minority and the country’s low ranking in the press freedom index and said the international media should hold Prime Minister Narendra Modi accountable for these. Shabnam Hashmi, social activist and founder of Anhad, alleged these are times worse than the Emergency.

“On the international platform, the prime minister is talking about freedom of speech and he should be ashamed of it. This is absolute hypocrisy,” Hashmi told PTI. Aakar Patel, chair of board for Amnesty International India, said the Indian authorities are targeting Zubair for his crucial work to combat the rise in fake news and disinformation and call out discrimination against minorities.

“The arrest of Mohammed Zubair shows the danger facing human rights defenders in India has reached a crisis point,” Patel said in a statement. In a statement issued on Monday, leaders of the G7 grouping and its five partner countries, including India, committed to open public debate, independent and pluralistic media and the free flow of information online and offline, while guarding the freedom, independence and diversity of civil society actors.

The leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said they are prepared to defend these principles and are resolved to protect the freedom of expression.

Meanwhile, Opposition parties reacted sharply to Zubair’s arrest, calling out the BJP government at the Centre for its hypocrisy since the arrest came on a day Prime Minister Narendra Modi signed the “2022 Resilient Democracies Statement” at the G7 summit, committing to “protect freedom of expression and opinion online and offline”.

Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi said that Zubair had been arrested for exposing the BJP’s hate, bigotry and lies. Gandhi tweeted: “Arresting one voice of truth will only give rise to a thousand more. The truth ALWAYS triumphs over tyranny.” At a press conference on Tuesday, Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate said that while perpetrators of hate were receiving political patronage, those who reported such hate were being jailed.

Going a step further, All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) president Asaduddin Owaisi said that there was a threat to Zubair’s life since the Delhi Police was not following established procedures.

Owaisi tweeted: “He’s been arrested with no notice & in some unknown FIR. Total violation of due process. @DelhiPolice does nothing about anti-Muslim genocidal slogans but acts swiftly against “crime” of reporting hate speech and countering misinformation.” The Opposition leaders also called for Zubair’s immediate release.

Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury said that the arrest clearly showed the Modi government is “insecure and threatened by anyone who exposes its hate machine of misinformation”.

The Trinamool Congress issued an official statement condemning the arrest. In a strongly-worded tweet from the party’s official handle, the TMC said, “It is much easier to cry foul when someone not from your own party is allegedly hurting religious sentiments. Arrest @NupurSharmaBJP, and show the country that the same rules apply to all. The rule of law is not for you to tamper with @BJP4India!”

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