Mohammed Zubair has requested the Supreme Court to cancel six cases filed against him by the Uttar Pradesh Police.Ā
Mumbai: Alt News co-founder and fact-checker Mohammed Zubair, against whom six FIRs have been filed by the Uttar Pradesh police, moved the Supreme Court of India on Thursday seeking to cancel all the FIRs.
A Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been formed by the UP police to probe multiple cases against him. The SIT has been asked to conduct a speedy probe and submit a charge sheet. Zubair has also asked the Supreme Court to call off the SIT team, as per reports.
On Tuesday, the top court had extended his interim bail in a case registered at Sitapur in Uttar Pradesh, which accused him of hurting religious sentiments. The co-founder of fact-checking website Alt News had told the Supreme Court he was receiving death threats.
The relief, however, was not extended to the other cases filed against him in Uttar Pradesh and Delhi. He is still in jail.
Mohammed Zubair was arrested on June 27 by the Delhi Police over a four-year-old tweet that carried a screenshot from a popular Hindi movie released in 1983. The arrest came days after he had flagged a video of suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma’s provocative remarks on Prophet Mohammed on a TV show.
In Tuesday’s hearing, a bench of Justices DY Chandrachud and AS Bopanna had granted four weeks to the Uttar Pradesh government to file a response on Mohammed Zubair’s plea. The matter will be heard next on September 7.
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