Charged with sedition, student moves court

nNEW DELHI : A 21-year-old transidentified student, who was charged with sedition for reportedly raising slogans during the Mumbai Pride Solidarity Gathering on February 1, approached the sessions court for anticipatory bail on Tuesday, and their plea is likely to be heard on Wednesday.

The student, whose name given at birth is Urvashi, but uses the name Kris Chudawala, is among 51 persons against whom the police registered by a First Information Report after former BJP MP Kirit Somaiya lodged a complaint on February 2.

The student’s mother also gave her statement to the Mumbai police on Tuesday. “Someone would have instigated her to shout those slogans; she is not the kind of person who would do that,” their mother said, addressing media after recording her statement.

The Azad Maidan police station, which is conducting the probe is expected to submit a response by Wednesday. Chudawala’s lawyer Vijay Hiremath said that he would comment on the case only after the hearing.

On February 2, Somaiya tweeted a video of a group of persons raising slogans pertaining to Sharjeel Imam, a PHD student of the Jawaharlal Nehru University, who was booked for sedition last week after making allegedly inflammatory speeches in Delhi and at Aligarh.

A day later Somaiya tweeted, “I filed complaint with Mumbai Police on anti national demonstration/slogans in support of Sharjeel Imam during 1 Feb LGBT program. Thackeray Govt asked police not to register FIR. I will start “DHARNA” at Azad Maidan Police Station if action not taken in 3 day @Bjp4maharashtra.”

Soon after the video surfaced, QAM released a press statement which they also handed over to the police, a QAM volunteer who wished to remain anonymous, told HT. “We completely dissociate ourselves from and strongly condemn the abrupt radical slogans in support of Sharjeel and/ or any other slogans against the integrity of India at the gathering,” the statement read.

(With inputs from Yesha Kotak,

Presley Thomas)