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On Thursday, the Supreme Court refused to grant bail to Odisha-based journalist Abhijit Iyer Mitra, accused of making derogatory remarks on the Sun Temple in Konark, Odisha.
A bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi dismissed the plea of Mitra while observing that he “incited religious sentiments”.
The apex court also refused to entertain the submission of Mitra’s counsel that his client was facing threat to his life.The bench, also comprising of justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and K M Joseph said that if there is a danger to mitra’s life, then he better stay in jail and be safe.
Mitra was arrested on September 20 by the Odisha police in Delhi but was granted bail by a Delhi court directing him to join the probe.
The trial court granted relief to Mitra on a personal bond of Rs 1 lakh and one surety of the like amount on a plea moved by him, while ordering him to continue the investigation in his native state. On September 20, Odisha Assembly adopted a privilege motion against Mitra for his alleged derogatory remarks. Mitra, who is the accused in this case along with former BJD-leader Baijayant Panda, was arrested near Hazrat Nizamuddin here and was produced before the Delhi court, with Odisha police requesting his transit remand for three days to take him to his native state. Odisha police told the court that Mitra gave irresponsible and unpalatable remarks on Konark Sun Temple by uploading his view on social media with an intention to outrage and to wound religious feeling and create communal fraction. It had said that on 14th September the accused took his photograph alongwith some portion of Konark Sun Temple and he tweeted against the Odiya people
The tweets were made on September 14. A case was filed under various sections of the IPC, including 153-A (promoting enmity between different groups on the ground of religion, race, place of birth, language, residence etc) and 295-A (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting their religion or religious beliefs). If convicted, the accused may get sentenced to a maximum of three-year jail term.
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