Sketchy evidence, says court as it grants Disha bail
NEW DELHI: A Delhi court on Tuesday granted bail to climate activist Disha Ravi, saying there was “scanty” and “sketchy” evidence to back charges of sedition against her and asserting that citizens couldn’t be jailed simply because they disagreed with government policies.
Additional sessions judge Dharmender Rana released the 22-year-old activist on a personal bond of ₹1 lakh and two sureties of similar amounts, roughly 10 days after she was arrested by Delhi Police in Bengaluru for allegedly editing a social media document, or toolkit, about the ongoing farmer protest against three central laws.
The judge held that Ravi had no connection with pro-Khalistani organisations, Poetic Justice Foundation (PJF) and Sikhs for Justice, and that there was not an “iota” of evidence linking her to the violence that rocked Delhi on Republic Day.
“Considering the scanty and sketchy evidence available on record, I do not find any palpable reasons to breach the general rule of bail against a 22 year old young lady, with absolutely blemish free criminal antecedents and having firms firm roots in the society, and send her to jail,” the judge said.
The court also said the call for any kind of violence was conspicuously absent from the toolkit, and no evidence was on record to suggest Ravi subscribed to secessionist ideas. Activists have repeatedly said the toolkit is an innocuous document used by social media campaigns for strategy and planning.