DELHI POLICE TO QUIZ SHARJEEL FOR FIVE DAYS

NEW DELHI: JNU scholar Sharjeel Imam, who was arrested for sedition on Tuesday afternoon from his village in Bihar’s Jehanabad by a team of Delhi and Bihar police, was, on Wednesday, remanded to five days in police custody by a Delhi court.

Imam was wanted by the police in Delhi, among five other states, on charge of sedition, among others, for his allegedly inflammatory and instigating speech at an anti-CAA protest on December 13, 2019—two days before a violent clash broke out between police and protesters.

A video that shows him allegedly talking about blocking the North East from the rest of India for at least a month and isolating Assam has been widely circulated on social media. Hindustan Times could not independently verify the authenticity of the video. His mother, Agsan Rahim, had emphasised that Imam’s speech was misconstrued and taken out of context.

Imam was brought to Delhi on Wednesday afternoon. Deputy commissioner of police (crime) Rajesh Deo confirmed that they have been given Imam’s custody for five days. An officer privy to the investigation, who did not wish to be identified, said Imam will be questioned and shown excerpts of his speech. Police said they will check his cellphone and probe if he is part of a larger organisation mobilising the protests. “We will also try to establish the sequence of events through his statement. If need be, others will also be questioned,” the officer added.