Srinagar: A court in Jammu and Kashmir has granted bail to a PhD scholar who was arrested in 2022 for a “seditious” article he allegedly wrote in 2011.

Abdul Aala Fazili was arrested in 2022 for allegedly writing a “seditious” article titled ‘Shackles of Slavery Will Break’ in 2011, published in ‘The Kashmir Walla’, an online magazine, whose editor Fahad Shah was also arrested.

The court, led by the 3rd Additional Sessions Judge handling TADA/POTA/UAPA cases in Jammu, granted bail citing weak evidence linking Fazili to the article’s authorship.

The judge noted Fazili’s prolonged custody and emphasised that any potential acquittal would not compensate for his time incarcerated.

Fazili, detained by the State Investigation Agency (SIA) in Srinagar, has returned home to the Valley following his release from detention in the Jammu region.

The SIA had accused Fazili’s article of being provocative and seditious, aiming to incite unrest and glorify militancy in Jammu and Kashmir. However, the court’s ruling dismissed these claims, stating the article did not incite violence or militancy. It highlighted a decade-long government inaction on the article until Fazili was charged in 2022, suggesting it did not escalate law and order issues.

Noting Fazili’s first-time offender status and similar bail granted to his co-accused, the court emphasised their roles in publishing the article, which it deemed ineffective had it not been published. Additionally, it referenced a prior High Court judgment affirming the article’s content lacked incitement to armed rebellion or violence against the state.

As part of bail conditions, Fazili must regularly report to a Mahore police station and attend all court hearings.