New Delhi [India], September 26 (ANI): The Supreme Court has relaxed certain conditions imposed on the interim bail granted to MLA Abbas Ansari in a Gangster Act case.
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi permitted Ansari to travel outside Uttar Pradesh by modifying a condition that had restricted him to travel outside the State.
However, the bench clarified that Ansari must provide the trial court with the address of the destination and other details of his journey whenever he travels outside the State.
The top court also modified another condition imposed on Ansari, which required him not to change his current place of residence in Lucknow, by allowing him to reside at a different address. This relaxation would also be subject to Ansari submitting the details of the new residential address to the local police and the trial court.
The Court was hearing a plea filed by Ansari seeking the lifting of conditions imposed on his interim bail.
Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Ansari, also sought that the Court may also relax the condition regarding restricting Ansari from making any public speeches.
However, the Court clarified that it had not restricted Ansari from speaking in public. In fact, Ansari, being a public figure, can always speak over social and economic issues, as politicians usually do, the Court said.
The Court explained that the said condition was limited to the extent that Ansari would not speak in public about any of the ongoing cases in which he’s involved, as they are sub judice (pending to be decided by the Court).
It further clarified that it wasn’t intending to gag Ansari, but to protect the Court from being attacked on social media, as has been happening frequently lately.
“We are not gagging him; we are saving the court from social media attacks. It may not be his fault; he may make a statement innocently. But the way it will be post-mortemed in the night (over social media). As a public personality, you can make any statement (otherwise), it’s a public life, the Court said to Sibal.
However, when Sibal insisted that a judicial order regarding speech must be relaxed, as it had scared Ansari from making any speeches.
The Court modified the speech condition but maintained that Ansari will not speak in public about any of the cases he’s involved in.
The Supreme Court had, on March this year, granted interim bail to Ansari in a case under the UP Gangsters and Anti-social Activities (Prevention) Act, 1986. (ANI)
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