The Supreme Court of India has suspended legal proceedings against Ashoka University professor Ali Khan Mahmudabad, who has two police cases filed against him for a sensitive social media post. The Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi bench also issued a directive to the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Haryana Police, preventing them from framing charges against the professor till the next hearing.
Police File Closure Report in One Case
At the hearing, the Haryana Police reported to the court that a closure report had been submitted in one of Professor Mahmudabad's cases. The case is related to a social media post he had put up on May 18, and for this, he was arrested. The post referred to the government's move to get two women officers, Wing Commander Vyomika Singh and Colonel Sofiya Qureshi, to brief the media about "Operation Sindoor," a military operation in response to the April 22 attack on Pahalgam.
Bail Conditions Relaxed
After his arrest, the Supreme Court released Professor Mahmudabad on bail three days later, subject to a condition that he would not write any articles or social media postings or give speeches about the case. He was also prohibited from issuing comments regarding the Pahalgam attack or Operation Sindoor and needed to submit his passport.
But the bench has now eased these bail conditions. The professor is now allowed to write blogs and articles and express viewpoints, except for commenting on the cases against him. The court, on May 28, had clarified that there was no barrier in the way of his right to freedom of speech and expression but reaffirmed the prohibition on talking about the particular cases on the Internet.
Dr. Mahmudabad has been accused under several provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including those dealing with acts intending to imperil national integrity and inciting hatred between groups.
