Hathras incident

The Supreme Court on Monday granted bail for five days to Kerala journalist Siddique Kappan on an application filed by the Kerala Union Working Journalists seeking his release to meet his ailing 90-year-old bed-ridden mother

The Kerala Union of Working Journalists (KUWJ) had, through its plea, asked the Supreme Court to intervene and exercise its constitutional powers to order the release of Kappan calling it an illegal arrest and unlawful detention.

Kappan was arrested while he was on his way to report the Hathras incident and to meet the victim’s family. A petition was then filed by the KUWJ contending that the detention of Kappan is violative of the fundamental rights guaranteed under Articles 14, 19 and 21 of the Constitution.