Editor's Pick: Activist Teesta Setalvad to continue on bail, says Supreme Court

The Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled that activist Teesta Setalvad will continue on bail in accordance with its September 2, 2022 order, quashing a July 1 order of the Gujarat High Court directing her to surrender immediately in a forgery case linked to the 2002 riots. Appearing for Ms. Setalvad, senior advocate Kapil Sibal said the contents of victims’ statements/affidavits were never challenged in the past 20 years. “Why now? There is no logic,” he submitted. The Supreme Court Bench of Justices B.R. Gavai, A.S. Bopanna, and Dipankar Datta said the High Court order, spanning over 100 pages, proved to be an “interesting read” and was riddled with “contradictions”. Custodial questioning is not necessary as the evidence in the case is documentary and in the hands of the police, the Supreme Court said. Ms. Setalvad has already been arrested in the case once, on June 25, 2022, by a team of Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad officers, based on an FIR filed in Gujarat the previous day. The FIR was triggered by a Supreme Court judgement on June 24, 2022, that had dismissed allegations of a “larger conspiracy” behind the riots, hatched in collusion with leaders in power at the time, including then Gujarat Chief Minister and current Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In the FIR, Ms. Setalvad is accused of forgery (Section 468 IPC), fabricating evidence intending to convict a person in a capital offence (Section 194 IPC), and other crimes. Offences under Sections 194 and 468 are non-bailable. Mr. Sibal said that the observations in the June 24 verdict should not have been used to register an FIR against her. The Gujarat Police was represented by Additional Solicitor General S.V. Raju, who maintained that Ms. Setalvad had committed a “serious” crime and tried to destabilise an elected government in Gujarat by deliberately fabricating evidence. The Supreme Court’s September 2022 order, granting bail to Ms. Setalvad, was based on the ground that she was a woman who had already undergone seven days of police remand and suffered two months in custody. The Hindu’s Editorials Show of strength: On the NDA and its coalition versus the Opposition The missing numbers: On the current vacuum of official data The Hindu’s Daily News Quiz Former Kerala CM Oommen Chandy passed away on July 18. He was the Chief Minister of Kerala how many times? Three One Four Two To know the answer and to play the full quiz, click here. [logo] Editor's Pick 20 July 2023 [The Hindu logo] In the Editor's Pick newsletter, The Hindu explains why a story was important enough to be carried on the front page of today's edition of our newspaper. [Arrow]( [Open in browser]( [Mail icon]( [More newsletters]( Activist Teesta Setalvad to continue on bail, says Supreme Court The Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled that [activist Teesta Setalvad will continue on bail]( in accordance with its September 2, 2022 order, quashing a July 1 order of the Gujarat High Court directing her to surrender immediately in a forgery case linked to the 2002 riots. Appearing for Ms. Setalvad, senior advocate Kapil Sibal said the contents of victims’ statements/affidavits were never challenged in the past 20 years. “Why now? There is no logic,” he submitted. The Supreme Court Bench of Justices B.R. Gavai, A.S. Bopanna, and Dipankar Datta said the High Court order, spanning over 100 pages, proved to be an “interesting read” and was riddled with “contradictions”. Custodial questioning is not necessary as the evidence in the case is documentary and in the hands of the police, the Supreme Court said. Ms. Setalvad has already been arrested in the case once, on June 25, 2022, by a team of Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad officers, based on an FIR filed in Gujarat the previous day. The FIR was triggered by a Supreme Court judgement on June 24, 2022, that had dismissed allegations of a “larger conspiracy” behind the riots, hatched in collusion with leaders in power at the time, including then Gujarat Chief Minister and current Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In the FIR, Ms. Setalvad is accused of forgery (Section 468 IPC), fabricating evidence intending to convict a person in a capital offence (Section 194 IPC), and other crimes. Offences under Sections 194 and 468 are non-bailable. Mr. Sibal said that the observations in the June 24 verdict should not have been used to register an FIR against her. The Gujarat Police was represented by Additional Solicitor General S.V. Raju, who maintained that Ms. Setalvad had committed a “serious” crime and tried to destabilise an elected government in Gujarat by deliberately fabricating evidence. The Supreme Court’s September 2022 order, granting bail to Ms. Setalvad, was based on the ground that she was a woman who had already undergone seven days of police remand and suffered two months in custody. The Hindu’s Editorials [Arrow][Show of strength: On the NDA and its coalition versus the OppositionÂ]( [Arrow][The missing numbers: On the current vacuum of official data]( The Hindu’s Daily News Quiz Former Kerala CM Oommen Chandy passed away on July 18. He was the Chief Minister of Kerala how many times? - Three - One - Four - Two To know the answer and to play the full quiz, [click here](. [Sign up for free]( [[Manipur sexual assault | SC takes suo motu cognisance of viral video, says it is “deeply disturbed”] Manipur sexual assault | SC takes suo motu cognisance of viral video, says it is “deeply disturbed”]( [[Manipur sexual assault | Modi breaks silence, assures stringent punishment for guilty with “full might of law”] Manipur sexual assault | Modi breaks silence, assures stringent punishment for guilty with “full might of law”]( [[Explained | What does aspartame being ‘possibly carcinogenic’ mean?] Explained | What does aspartame being ‘possibly carcinogenic’ mean?]( [[Netflix's subscriber growth signals that password sharing crackdown is paying off] Netflix's subscriber growth signals that password sharing crackdown is paying off]( Copyright @ 2023, THG PUBLISHING PVT LTD. If you are facing any trouble in viewing this newsletter, please [try here]( Manage your newsletter subscription preferences [here]( If you do not wish to receive such emails [go here](