Court acquits 76-year-old Muhammed Nayeem in 1993 Gorakhpur sedition case
Lucknow: A Special NIA Court in Lucknow acquitted the 76-year-old Muhammad Nayeem, resident of Ismailpur, Gorakhpur, of all charges in a 1993 sedition case.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the court ruled that the prosecution had failed to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt and could not produce a shred of crucial evidence linking him to the alleged crime.
Additional District and Sessions Judge and Special Judge (NIA) Umakant Jindal delivered the judgment, bringing to an end a prosecution that had lasted nearly half of Nayeem’s life.
Nayeem had been facing trial under three stringent provisions of the Indian Penal Code — Section 124A, 295A (outraging religious feelings), and 153B (imputations prejudicial to national integration: Sedition).
The case dates back to Republic Day, January 26, 1993 — just seven weeks after the demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya had left the country on edge, and eastern Uttar Pradesh simmering with communal tension.
According to the FIR registered at Kotwali Police Station, Gorakhpur, Kotwali Inspector Pawan Kumar Singh and his team were on patrol in Ismailpur when they allegedly saw a group of men hoisting black flags and shouting slogans like “Pakistan Zindabad” and “Republic Day Murdabad.”
On that basis, Nayeem, along with Mohammad Yusuf, Ataullah and others, was named as an accused.
