Dr Kafeel Khan was released from Mathura jail at midnight on Wednesday after the Allahabad High Court on Tuesday quashed his detention under the National Security Act (NSA) and ordered his immediate release, saying his speech at the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) didn't promote hatred or violence.
Khan's lawyer Irfan Ghazi told PTI, "Mathura jail administration informed at around 11.00 pm that Dr Kafeel will be released, and at around midnight, he was released".
The bench, comprising Chief Justice Govind Mathur and Justice Saumitra Dayal Singh, passed the order on a petition filed by Khan's mother Nuzhat Parveen. The petition alleged that Khan was granted bail in February by a competent court and he was supposed to be released on bail. However, he was not released for four days and the NSA was subsequently invoked against him. Hence, his detention was illegal, the petition argued.
The court has asked Khan to submit two sureties of Rs 60,000 each and an undertaking that he will not repeat the offence. The state government had opposed his release on the ground that he would again make provocative speeches and vitiate the atmosphere.
Khan was in jail since January after he delivered the alleged provocative speech at the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) during the anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) protests in December last year. He was lodged in Mathura jail.
(With PTI inputs)
