Bail for Disha Ravi denied

The online “toolkit”, cited by the Delhi police to accuse three persons of sedition over the past few days, was merely a “resource document” and did not “sow disaffection”, eco-activist Disha Ravi told a Delhi court today while moving her bail plea. She said as an activist, her cause was the environment and agriculture, not Khalistan as accused.

The Delhi police opposed the 22-year-old’s petition saying the toolkit was, in fact, a gateway to another website aimed at defaming India and its army. Ms Ravi, the only person arrested in the case, is closely connected to the Khalistan-backing organisation Poetic Justice Foundation (PJF), they claimed. After listening to both sides, the court reserved its order for Tuesday, but not before hinting that at least some of the prosecution’s claims were conjectures.
“I am 22, from Karnataka. I have no connection with Khalistan movement, whatsoever,” Ms Ravi argued before Justice Dharmendra Rana. “There is no single chat or conversation between me and the (banned organisation) Sikhs For Justice (SFJ) produced by the Delhi police.”

The prosecution has claimed that PJF, which is not proscribed, had close ties to SFJ, concluding, in turn, that it makes Ms Ravi an accomplice to alleged Khalistani activity.

During a hearing on a bail plea by Ravi at the Patiala House Court, the Delhi Police had argued that the 22-year-old needs to be thoroughly investigated as “she was aware of the criminality of her actions”, adding that the investigation will reveal the “sinister design to defame India.”

Responding to the arguments, the defence told the court that Disha Ravi was not a rebel without a cause. “There’s a cause of environment, of agriculture and interlink between them,” he said.

The defence also stated that nobody arrested in connection with the Red Fort violence has said that they were inspired by toolkit and added that there was no evidence to show that the toolkit was responsible for the riots during the farmers’ march on January 26.