NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked whether former JNU student Sharjeel Imam can be prosecuted in different states for offences including sedition over a single speech.
The top court was hearing Imam’s 2020 plea seeking the clubbing of multiple FIRs registered against him across four states—Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, and Arunachal Pradesh—for an alleged inflammatory speech delivered during protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA).
A two-judge bench of the apex court, led by Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar, was apprised by senior advocate Sidharth Dave, appearing for Imam, who argued that his client could not be subjected to multiple trials across the country for a single speech. “I may have given the worst speech. But you cannot take away my right to the rule of law,” Dave told the court.
During the hearing, Additional Solicitor General S.V. Raju, representing the Delhi Police, submitted that Imam instigated mobs in Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and Delhi. He added that the offences were distinct. “The offence against the state is one issue, and the offence against society is another. Delhi Police booked Imam under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act,” he told the court. After hearing Raju’s submissions, the apex court noted that the speech in question was the same.
“If the speech is on YouTube, etc., then it can be heard across the country and the impact will be the same,” the bench said.