<p>The Allahabad High Court on Tuesday quashed the NSA slapped on Kafeel Khan, a Gorakhpur-based doctor, for allegedly delivering an "inflammatory speech" regarding the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Act at Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), and ordered his immediate release.</p>.<p>Khan had been lodged in Mathura jail after being arrested from Mumbai in January this year. Though he was granted bail by the lower court a month later, the state government had slapped the NSA and further extended it for three months a few days back.</p>.<p>A division bench comprising Chief justice Govind Mathur and justice Soumitra Dayal Singh, in its judgement, quoted the entire speech of Khan at the AMU in December last year, said that 'a complete reading of the speech prima facie does not disclose any effort to promote hatred or violence'.</p>.<p>"The address gives a call for national integrity and unity among the citizens....the speech also deprecates any kind of violence...it appears that the District Magistrate had selective reading and selective mention for few phrases from the speech ignoring its true intent," the court said.</p>.<p>The court also found it strange that Khan had addressed the gathering on December 12, 2019 but at that time the district administration had not found his speech objectionable enough to warrant NSA.</p>.<p>"It is only after passing of the bail order by the lower court, the police officials and the district magistrate, Aligarh initiated the process for detaining Khan under the NSA," it said.</p>.<p>The court also came down heavily on the authorities for not 'giving effective opportunity to the detenue to represent at earliest'.</p>.<p>"It is conveyed to us that no transcript of the speech was supplied to the detenue...such non-supply of material violates a precious fundamental right of a detenue enshrined under Article 22 of the Constitution...on this count also the detention of Dr. Kafeel Khan deserves to be set aside," the court said.</p>.<p>The opposition slammed the state government for what they alleged "illegal detention" of Khan. "I hope the UP government will immediately release Khan," said Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.</p>.<p>Khan was also an accused in the case of the death of over 60 children owing to lack of oxygen at Gorakhpur Medical College three years back. He was arrested in that matter also and spent nine months in jail before being enlarged on bail.</p>
<p>The Allahabad High Court on Tuesday quashed the NSA slapped on Kafeel Khan, a Gorakhpur-based doctor, for allegedly delivering an "inflammatory speech" regarding the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Act at Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), and ordered his immediate release.</p>.<p>Khan had been lodged in Mathura jail after being arrested from Mumbai in January this year. Though he was granted bail by the lower court a month later, the state government had slapped the NSA and further extended it for three months a few days back.</p>.<p>A division bench comprising Chief justice Govind Mathur and justice Soumitra Dayal Singh, in its judgement, quoted the entire speech of Khan at the AMU in December last year, said that 'a complete reading of the speech prima facie does not disclose any effort to promote hatred or violence'.</p>.<p>"The address gives a call for national integrity and unity among the citizens....the speech also deprecates any kind of violence...it appears that the District Magistrate had selective reading and selective mention for few phrases from the speech ignoring its true intent," the court said.</p>.<p>The court also found it strange that Khan had addressed the gathering on December 12, 2019 but at that time the district administration had not found his speech objectionable enough to warrant NSA.</p>.<p>"It is only after passing of the bail order by the lower court, the police officials and the district magistrate, Aligarh initiated the process for detaining Khan under the NSA," it said.</p>.<p>The court also came down heavily on the authorities for not 'giving effective opportunity to the detenue to represent at earliest'.</p>.<p>"It is conveyed to us that no transcript of the speech was supplied to the detenue...such non-supply of material violates a precious fundamental right of a detenue enshrined under Article 22 of the Constitution...on this count also the detention of Dr. Kafeel Khan deserves to be set aside," the court said.</p>.<p>The opposition slammed the state government for what they alleged "illegal detention" of Khan. "I hope the UP government will immediately release Khan," said Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.</p>.<p>Khan was also an accused in the case of the death of over 60 children owing to lack of oxygen at Gorakhpur Medical College three years back. He was arrested in that matter also and spent nine months in jail before being enlarged on bail.</p>
