Former JNU student Sharjeel Imam, an accused in a case relating to the suspected conspiracy behind the 2020 Northeast Delhi riots, filed a petition in a Delhi court on Monday, July 4, citing a threat to his life.
The case, which is expected to be heard before Special Judge Amitabh Rawat on July 14, alleges that the assistant superintendent of jail recently entered his cell at Tihar Jail with eight-ten other people in the guise of a search, assaulted him, and called him a “terrorist and anti-national.”
According to the Indian Express, Imam’s lawyer Ibrahim filed an application before a link judge at Karkardooma court to issue a show-cause notice to jail authorities for the “illegal assault and search committed upon the applicant” and to direct authorities to take immediate steps to protect him from any “further assault/ harassment.” His lawyer claimed that on June 30 evening, 8 to 10 criminals came to Imam’s cell “in the name of carrying out a search,” tossed his books and clothes away, and assaulted him.
The petition also requested the judge to order jail officials to retain video taken on the jail’s CCTV camera from 7:15 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. on Thursday, June 30, when the alleged incident occurred. The judge served the relevant jail officials with a notice. The hearing is scheduled for July 14, when the authorities are anticipated to file their report.
Speaking to Indian Express, Ibrahim said, “I moved the application to secure his safety. This is the first case of an assault that was disclosed by a riot accused. Search operations are regularly carried out inside his cell and they have never found contraband. This time, jail staff came with convicts which is illegal. Only jail staff can check the cells.”
According to the Indian Express report, a senior prison official stated that an investigation into the claimed incident will be performed. “We have received information about the incident and will conduct an enquiry. We are looking into the allegations against jail officials and inmates. We also received a request to preserve the CCTV footage and will do the same.”
Imam is accused of delivering inflammatory comments against the government on the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the National Register of Citizens (NRC), particularly at Jamia Milia Islamia University in December 2019, which allegedly sparked rioting in the surrounding neighbourhood.
Imam is also facing sedition charges for allegedly provoking speeches, he is also charged with the draconian UAPA and has been in judicial custody since January 2020.
