Taking a neutral stand, the Supreme Court on Friday allowed the Gujarat Police to continue to investigate Patel quota agitation leader Hardik Patel for sedition, but told the State to not file a chargesheet, in case the charges hold up, until it gives the final nod.
“We are no prejudicing your case nor are we prejudicing yours,” Justice J.S. Khehar told both Attorney-General Mukul Rohatgi for the State of Gujarat and senior advocate Kapil Sibal representing the 22-year-old Mr. Patel.
The Bench, also comprising Justice R. Banumathi, chose to remain diplomatic on a petition filed by Mr. Patel to quash the sedition charges against him even as Mr. Rohatgi strongly objected to any interference in police work even while accusing the Patel leader of having recently “stage-managed his abduction to get public sympathy”.
Sedition charges were slapped against the young leader after TV cameras caught him allegedly exhorting a youth to “kill” a few policemen instead of taking his own life.
The court gave the State Police a month and half's time to finish the investigation and submit the probe report before the Supreme Court by the next date of hearing on January 5, 2016. The Gujarat Police have also been stopped from filing any chargesheet in the sedition case before the date of the apex court hearing.
The court also refused to intervene in the judicial custody of Mr. Patel in the case, telling Mr. Sibal that they do not want to say anything before seeing the results of the probe.
Earlier this week, another Bench of Justices Gopala Gowda and Amitava Roy had recused themselves from hearing the petition without assigning any reasons.
At outset, Mr. Sibal contended that his client's alleged statement cannot be seen as an incitement to commit an offence against the State.
“If somebody says go and kill five policemen... what will happen if that person goes and kills five policemen... Is that no incitement to commit an offence?” Justice Khehar countered.
Countering Mr. Sibal's argument that there was no violent incidents or even rallies conducted between the date of alleged statement on October 3 and registering of an FIR, 15 days later, on October 18, Mr. Rohatgi said the government has enough proof that “large number of rallies were indeed planned in the interim”.
