The Kerala High Court on July 2, Friday has declined to stay further proceedings in the sedition case registered against Lakshadweep filmmaker Aisha Sulthana. Considering a plea filed by her seeking to quash the First Information Report registered against her by the Kavaratti police, the High Court said the investigation in the case was in a preliminary stage and more time may be required for completing the probe. Aisha Sultana, who faces a case of sedition, hails from Chetlat island in Lakshadweep. She works in the Malayalam film industry. The court also directed the Lakshadweep administration to provide details of the investigation. When the matter was taken up, the counsel for the administration opposed the plea, submitting that the investigation in the case was in a preliminary stage.

The High Court on June 17 had granted interim anticipatory bail for a week on the condition to appear before the police for interrogation under Section 41 A Criminal Procedure Code notice. Later on June 25, the court granted Aisha anticipatory bail. A case was registered on June 9 under Section 124-A (sedition) and 153 B (hate speech) of the Indian Penal Code on the basis of a petition lodged by a political leader hailing from Kavaratti. Granting bail, Justice Ashok Menon had said there was no apparent indication in her statement, which amounts to imputations or assertions prejudicial to the national interest, nor does it propagate any class of persons against another group of persons. The court also directed that in case the police arrest her, she should be granted interim bail after arrest.

Aisha was booked for criticizing Lakshadweep Administrator Praful Khoda Patel and alleging during a television channel debate that the Union government used a “bio-weapon” in the Union Territory. Aisha later had said that she meant that Praful Patel relaxing the lockdown rules had led to COVID-19 cases in the island, which is what she meant as bioterror,. The Lakshadweep police booked her on June 8 based on a complaint filed by BJP's Lakshadweep unit president, Abdul Khader. She was interrogated by the Kavaratti police thrice last week in connection with the case.

With PTI Inputs