Kashmiri students held for celebrating Pak win against India in WC get bail

The Allahabad high court has granted bail to three Kashmiri students who were arrested in October last year on sedition charges after they allegedly raised pro-Pakistan slogans following India’s loss to the neighbouring nation in a T-20 World Cup cricket match.

A bench, comprising justice Ajay Bhanot, issued the bail order for the students – Showkat Ahmed Ganai, Inayat Altaf Sheikh, and Arsheed Yusuf. All of them study at the Raja Balwant Singh (RBS) Engineering College in Agra, Uttar Pradesh.

The students, who were held on October 27, were also suspended by their college for the same alleged offence. The arrest came after an FIR was lodged against them by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Yuva Morcha leader Gaurav Rajawat.

In his complaint, Rajawat said the students had raised anti-national slogans such as “Bharat desh ke tukde honge” and hailed Pakistan by saying “Pakistan Zindabad”.

At the time of their suspension, police said the students had posted stories on their social media accounts praising Pakistan and disowning India as their country.

Following their suspension and subsequent arrest, People’s Democratic Party (PDP) president Mehbooba Mufti wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying the cricket match was “solely a source of entertainment” and the students were booked for “simply choosing to cheer the winning side”.