No precipitative action against Zubair until July 20: SC to Uttar Pradesh police

He gets interim bail in one case but gets arrested for some other case, the bench said

The Supreme Court on Monday told the Uttar Pradesh police not to take any precipitative action against Alt News co-founder Muhammad Zubair in five FIRs until Wednesday, saying there seemed to be a vicious cycle where he seems to get bail in one case and then arrested in another.

A bench of Justices D Y Chandrachud and A S Bopanna issued notice to the UP government on a plea filed by Zubair for quashing the FIRs registered against him by and fixed the matter for further hearing on July 20.

Taking up his petition urgently on a request by his counsel Vrinda Grover, the bench observed "contents of all FIRs seem to be similar. But the problem is the vicious cycle. He gets interim bail in one case but gets arrested for some other case”.

In her plea, Grover said the kind of targeting faced by her client must end as this is an abuse of the process of law.

She submitted that there are now six FIRs in UP - two in Hathras, and one each in Lakhimpur Kheri, Muzaffarnagar, Ghaziabad and, Sitapur.

As soon as the top court granted relief to her client in Sitapur case, a warrant came in case of Lakhimpur Kheri, she said, adding he got bail by a Delhi court in the FIR lodged by Delhi police.

The counsel also submitted all the FIRs against Zubair were based on old tweets and that the police now say that they are looking into larger conspiracy and foreign funds.

All these issues are already covered by the FIR registered in Delhi and her client’s electronic devices have already been seized, she submitted.

The bench ordered, "Since the petition is not on board today, we direct the registry to list the matter on July 20. In the meantime, we direct that no precipitative action whatsoever be taken against the petitioner in 5 FIRs without the leave of the court."

On Tuesday, the Uttar Pradesh government formed a two-member SIT to probe six cases lodged against Zubair. Inspector General Dr Preetinder Singh, who is presently posted at Department of Prisons Administration and Reform, has been made chairman of the SIT, while Deputy Inspector General of Police Amit Verma is a member of the SIT.

On July 12, the Supreme Court extended the interim bail granted to Zubair, by the top court, in the case registered against him at Sitapur, related to his tweet calling Hindu seers 'hatemongers'.

After his arrest by Delhi police on June 27, Zubair had remained in judicial custody.