*Paromita Das
Mohammed Zubair, the co-founder of the leftist propaganda website AltNews, was detained on Saturday for allegedly injuring Hindu sentiments, and the Delhi Police requested that he be held in judicial custody for 14 days.
The case was expanded by the police to include sections on criminal conspiracy, evidence destruction, and FCRA violations. Zubair’s attorney, Vrinda Grover, demanded that the court accept Zubair’s request for bail, arguing that the case’s investigation was already complete.
After his time in police custody was up, reports state that Zubair was today brought before the Patiala House Court. After being detained for making offensive comments about Hindu gods and goddesses, he was remanded to police custody for 4 days. Zubair’s attorney, Vrinda Grover, moved the bail application and claimed that the police had found the accused’s devices.
PP: We have added new provisions. He has formatted the phone.
Grover: The phone they have seized is I am using at present. The tweet is of 2018. It was a different device. #AltNews #MohammadZubair #DelhiPolice
— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 2, 2022
Atul Shrivastava, the public prosecutor who appeared in court on behalf of the Delhi Police, requested judicial custody for 14 days. He claimed that new laws had been added and that the Police wanted to look into the financial contributions that AltNews had received.
According to reports, the police wanted to amend section 35 of the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act, section 201 of the IPC, and section 120b of the Penal Code (criminal conspiracy). He has already been charged with violating IPC sections 295 (damaging or defiling a place of worship with the intent to insult the religion of any class) and 153A (promoting hostility between religious groups).
The proceedings took place a day after Zubair’s petition challenging the Patiala House Court order remanding him to police custody was given notice by the Delhi High Court to the Delhi Police. Zubair also objected to the court order allowing the inspection and seizure of Zubair’s laptop.
Zubair had previously been taken to his Bengaluru home by the police, where they seized his laptop and other electronic devices that he had used to post offensive messages on social media. The reports state that Zubair formatted his electronic devices and refused to turn them over. Zubair had allegedly refused to turn over his devices to the Police despite their repeated requests, according to the Police. But on June 30, the police found his laptop and announced that they would send it to CFSL, Rohini, for a forensic analysis.
Additionally, the alleged fact-checker Mohammed Zubair’s bank account information has been requested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). The Delhi police have been requested to provide the central agency with a First Information Report (FIR) and remand documents. The ED will examine Zubair’s bank account information to look for signs of money laundering. The Delhi Police allege that Zubair’s AltNews has received funding via Razor Pay from nations including Pakistan, Syria, and Australia, necessitating a thorough investigation.
PP: If you accept donation from even a person from another country it is a concern. As per CDR he received donations through Razor Pay from Pakistan, Syria, Australia, etc, which all things require investigation.#AltNews #MohammadZubair #DelhiPolice
— Bar & Bench (@barandbench) July 2, 2022
The Delhi Police detained Mohammed Zubair on June 28 for offending religious sentiments by disparaging Hinduism in online posts. He was charged with violating Indian Penal Code Sections 153A and 295. The FIR was based on a tweet from @balajikijaiin, who shared a screenshot of a previous tweet by Zubair mocking Lord Hanuman. @balajikijaiin had tagged the Delhi Police in the tweet and requested that they take action against Zubair for offending Hindus with his disparaging post about Lord Hanuman.
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