LUCKNOW: After 41 days of being granted bail by the Lucknow Bench of Allahabad High Court in connection with a case lodged against him under Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), Kerala journalist Siddique Kappan walked free from Lucknow jail after an incarceration of 28 months to be received by his wife Raihana and eldest son Muzammil, 19, on Thursday morning.
“I have come out of jail after 28 months. I want to thank the media for supporting me. False allegations were put against me. I am happy to be out now,” said the journalist while talking to media persons after his release. On September 9, 2022, the Supreme Court had granted bail to Kappan in the case lodged against him under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Amendment Act.
However, he remained in prison due to a pending PMLA case. Welcoming Kappan, his wife and son said that they were proud and happy that justice had been served at last. “We have experienced a lot of pain and suffering. But I am happy that justice, though delayed, has been served,” said an emotionally charged Raihana.
A resident of Malappuram in Kerala, Kappan was on his way to cover the gang rape and murder of a Dalit woman in Hathras on October 5, 2020, when he was arrested from Mathura toll plaza, along with three others.
Kappan along with his aides was accused of sedition and booked under the anti-terror law Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Activities (UAPA) on terror charges for allegedly conspiring with the banned Popular Front of India (PFI).
The police claimed that he was heading towards Hathras to incite caste conflagration and unrest. “They kept me in jail even after I got bail. I don’t know who’s benefiting from my being in jail,” he wondered while talking to media persons. Kappan has three children – Muzammil (19), Zidhan (14) and Mehnaz (9).