Amulya Leona gets default bail as police fail to file chargesheet

Amulya Leona (19), arrested in February on sedition charges for allegedly raising pro-Pakistan slogans at an anti-CAA protest site, has been granted default bail by the magistrate court after the police failed to file the chargesheet within the stipulated 90 day period.

The college student is likely to be released after being behind bars for over three months.

"The 90 days period for filing the chargesheet lapsed on May 20. We had soon after moved the court seeking default bail. However, since the trial courts were closed due to the lockdown the matter was not taken up. On June 2, we again preferred the application and an order was passed on June 10, the same day when Amulya's regular bail application came to be rejected by the sessions court," said her counsel.

The order of the magistrate is yet to be made available on the court website.

The Sessions Court, rejecting her application for regular bail, had observed : "The I.O. has not completed the investigation and has not filed the charge sheet. If the petitioner is released on bail, she may abscond or she may involve in similar offence which affect the peace at large."

As regards the argument on behalf of the applicant that mere sloganeering by itself cannot be an offence, Additional Session Judge Vidyadhar Shirahatti, observed: "It is my opinion that there are no materials to show that Pakistan is or not an enemy country. But the slogans which are alleged to have been used by the petitioner will certainly affect the feelings of public, law order and public peace."

Amulya was arrested on February 20, under section 124-A, 153 (A), 153-B, 505 (2) of Indian Penal Code. After being in police custody for five days she was sent to judicial custody and has been since then in prison.