Court grants bail to 7 students detained for cheering India's defeat in Cricket World Cup
Srinagar, Dec 2: A Court in Jammu and Kashmir's Ganderbal district on Saturday granted bail to seven Kashmiri students who were arrested and charged under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) for allegedly celebrating India's defeat in the World Cup Final.
Seven students of the Veterinary Sciences faculty at the Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology (SKUAST), at Shuhama in central Kashmir's Ganderbal, were arrested on November 20, a day after the World Cup final, following a complaint filed by a non-local student.
The complainant had alleged that these students abused and threatened to shoot him for supporting India. He also alleged that they raised pro-Pakistan slogans, “which created fear” amongst the non-local students.
Advocate Shafiq Bhat, the counsel representing the students confirmed that the bail has been granted to seven students by the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate Ganderbal.
He said that police have also dropped UAPA charges against these students.
J&K police, who had come under criticism for charging the students under UAPA, had earlier defended their action.
“It is not merely about raising pro-Pakistan slogans”, the statement says. “It is about the full context in which the sloganeering took place. These slogans, as has usually been the case with a select few bullies, were aired to intimidate those who disagreed and also to identify and vilify those who choose to keep a distance.”
