Following a tip about “suspicious people”, Mr Kappan and three others were arrested while they were going to Hathras to report on the alleged gang-rape.
Arrested in October on his way to Hathras in Uttar Pradesh to report on the alleged gang-rape of a Dalit woman, Kerala journalist Siddique Kappan has been granted bail by the Supreme Court for five days, with conditions, to visit his mother.
The Supreme Court said that during the visit, Mr Kappan can’t speak to the media or post on social media and he cannot meet anyone except relatives, doctors and anybody connected to his mother’s health.
The journalist will be escorted by the police and it will be the responsibility of the UP police to arrange his travel.
Mr Kappan was earlier allowed to speak to his mother via a video call.
Following a tip about “suspicious people”, he and three others were arrested while they were going to Hathras to report on the alleged gang-rape and the massive outrage it triggered.
A section of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act was applied by the police in the FIR, which deals with “raising funds for a terrorist act”. The Kerala journalist, since then, has been lodged at the jail in UP’s Mathura.
The Kerala Union of Working Journalists has denied these allegations and said Mr Kappan was tortured in jail.
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