The National Investigating Agency (NIA) on Sunday seized a hard disk, two pen drives, some receipts and an account book of the GN Saibaba Defence Committee from the house of Hany Babu, Delhi University professor who was recently arrested in the Elgar Parishad case, according to his wife Jenny Rowena.
‘Called a friend’
Ms. Rowena, who teaches in the English Department of Miranda House, said around 12 officials visited their house at 7.30 a.m. As she was staying with her daughter, Ms. Rowena did not let the officials in till they could call a friend over.
She said “because they don’t have anything right now” despite interrogating him continuously, the investigating agencies were trying to find some evidence before Mr. Babu’s bail hearing on August 4.
Apart from the accounts book, receipts related to the committee and bookings at the Press Club of India were also seized, she said.
“They came for specific items,” she added.
While Ms. Rowena was not aware of the contents of the hard disks, she said she demanded a clone of the devices as she was worried about them being tampered with, but was not given the same.
‘Bizarre probe’
“They have done it [tamper] before, when they added a folder on his hard disk… Why would Babu put a folder of incriminating evidence on his hard disk?” she said, adding that the investigation was “becoming more and more bizarre”.
The Delhi University Teachers’ Association (DUTA) said it stood with Mr. Babu and his family and expressed faith and hope in the judicial system to uphold constitutional rights and demanded a fair probe into the case.
The union added that both Mr. Babu and his wife are known for “their commitment to the cause of the anti-caste struggle, social justice and have actively taken up the matter of denial of OBC seats in DU through RTIs and social mobilisation, forcing the authorities to uphold the letter and spirit of constitutional provisions”.
Published - August 03, 2020 08:11 am IST
