Siddique Kappan granted 5-day bail to visit ailing mother in Kerala

It said Siddique will be escorted by a team of Uttar Pradesh police officers and police in Kerala will cooperate with them

The Supreme Court on Monday allowed Kerala journalist Sidhique Kappan to visit his mother for five days on a contention that she is extremely ill.

A bench presided over by Chief Justice S A Bobde, however, said he would not give interviews or address public gatherings during the time, including the ones on social media.

Kappan, arrested on October 5, 2020 while on way to Hathras, has been found associated with the Popular Front of India, which is a "reincarnation" of banned Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), the Uttar Pradesh police claimed.

The court granted the interim relief on humanitarian ground as senior advocate Kapil Sibal contended that earlier the mother couldn't talk to Kappan through video conferencing due to her health.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Uttar Pradesh government, opposed the plea saying posters were spotted in Kerala projecting him as a martyr. He added that funds were being collected in his name. He claimed that the person was associated with the PFI and found in possession of materials which could be used to spread communal and caste hatred.

The court passed its order on a habeas corpus petition by Kerala Union of Working Journalists.