Karnataka: Hindutva activists rallied against woman who posted WhatsApp status on Pakistan
A woman arrested on March 24 in Karnataka’s Bagalkot district for allegedly posting a WhatsApp status wishing Pakistan’s Republic Day was granted conditional bail despite the best efforts of Hindutva groups.
Kuthma Sheikh (25), a resident of Mudhol town in Bagalkot district, was granted conditional bail on March 26. According to Kuthma’s family members, she is confident that she will prove her innocence in the case.
Kuthma was arrested on March 24, a day before Arun Kumar Bhajantri, a Hindutva activist, allegedly lodged a complaint with the Bagalkot police station regarding his alleged objectionable WhatsApp status.
Kuthma in his WhatsApp status on 23 March had wished peace and prosperity to all countries on the eve of Pakistan’s Independence Day.
Kuthma’s family alleges that the Forum of Mudhol Hindu Organizations, through a memorandum, appealed to the Lawyers Association not to represent Kuthma Sheikh in the court, but with the help of local community leaders and close friends, the family was able to appoint a lawyer. , who helped the woman get bail.
This was followed by a hearing on Kuthma’s bail plea, during which some members of the Hindu Forum reached inside the court premises and created such a hostile atmosphere against the Sheikh family that the lawyer representing Kuthma asked him (the family) to leave the court. And advised to apply for bail the next day.
Crime and arrest
However, in the conditional bail granted to Kuthma, he has been forbidden from talking to the media in this matter.
His brother Salman told The Wire that Bhajantri was able to see Kuthma’s WhatsApp status because his wife had provided Kuthma with sewing services and both the women had each other’s phone numbers.
Salman said, ‘A private WhatsApp status wishing peace and prosperity to all nations was deliberately made viral by the complainant and his network people. This was done to file a frivolous complaint against Kuthma. People of different communities have been talking to each other peacefully in the Mudhol area and everything was normal till this news came out.
Rizwan Sheikh, one of Kuthma’s brothers, was at home on the night of 23 March when the police reached his house.
Recalling Rizwan, he said, ‘Two female constables reached our house at around eight o’clock on the night of 23 March. When I opened the door, he asked if there was any woman in the house. When I called my mother, the lady constable spoke to my mother and sister and showed them the screenshot of my sister’s WhatsApp status that she had uploaded.
According to Rizwan, a total of six policemen had come that day, out of which four were male and two were female constables.
He said, ‘He did not have any warrant but he said that he is there to ensure our safety because people have taken the WhatsApp status uploaded by my sister in a wrong way’.
Rizwan said, ‘We cooperated with them and answered their questions. The female constable stayed at our house that night while the four male constables remained outside. The women policemen also took pictures of Kuthma.
He said that the next morning at around five o’clock all the policemen took Kuthma to the office of the Circle Police Inspector. During this, Rizwan also accompanied him, where he waited till 10 am.
Rizwan said, “After 10 am we were taken to the police station, where different officers interrogated my sister. My sister’s WhatsApp status was for the wishes of all countries, so she explained her side to them and said that she did not know that this message would be made an issue in this way. He made it clear that his intention was nothing more than to wish peace for all countries.
He said Kuthma was again photographed at the police station and several documents were signed by him. At around 1 pm, the policemen took him to the government hospital for a medical test.
Rizwan said, ‘I was not allowed to accompany him to the hospital.’
According to Rizwan, during this entire process no family member was shown a warrant for Kuthma’s arrest.
Kuthma’s brothers were also shocked by the fact that photographs of Kuthma taken by the police during his arrest and interrogation went viral on social media.
Salman said, ‘Kuthama did not post any picture on social media. However, when the police took him along for questioning, they clicked his picture, which later went viral on WhatsApp groups in the town.
Bail plea
According to Salman, Kuthma was first produced before the court on March 24 and then sent to judicial custody.
Salman told The Wire, ‘We hired a lawyer and tried to ensure his bail before March 24 but the court rejected him. The next day on March 25, I went to the court with a lawyer to ensure Kuthma’s bail, but about 10-15 members of the Hindu from Mudhol gathered in the court premises. This group appealed to the Lawyers Association not to fight the case of Kuthma.
He said that the atmosphere in the court deteriorated in the presence of members of the Hindu group and Kuthma’s lawyer asked Salman to leave the premises saying that he would file the bail application the next day.
Salman said, ‘The court granted bail to my sister on 26 March. We got bail orders at around 4.30 pm and he was released on the same day at 7 pm.
Memorandum
The memorandum submitted by Hindu organizations of Mudhol to the Lawyers Association said, “In connection with the above subject, Kuthma Shaikh, a Muslim woman resident of Mudhol, is involved in anti-national activity on 23rd March as she posted a picture of Pakistan flag on her WhatsApp status.” Have taken a stand against India. We have registered a case against him in this regard. There is a possibility that she may apply for bail, so we urge the Hindu organization Lawyers Association of Mudhol to show patriotism by not helping in the proceeding of the bail petition.
Police point of view
Balakot superintendent of police Lokesh Bharamappa Jagalsar told The Wire that the case against Kuthma Sheikh is still under investigation.
Jagalsar said, the woman had uploaded a post related to Pakistan. We received a complaint that the post was provocative and was aimed at creating disharmony in the society. Since the motive of the accused is not known, the investigation of the case is going on.
Kuthma was booked under IPC sections 153 (A) (causing enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, caste, creed) and 505 (2) (making statements promoting enmity between different groups).
Jagalsar said, ‘Our role is to reduce the tension between the two. Being the police, we have seen provocative posts from both the sides and we have taken note of it. We are examining all the aspects involved in this. Our focus is to maintain peace, law and order in the region. We will investigate accordingly.
Asking for a copy of the grounds on which the FIR was registered against Kuthma, Jagalsar said that the FIR has been uploaded on his website but he has forgotten the number of the FIR.
