After being arrested by the Delhi Police over a 2018 tweet last week, journalist and Alt News co-founder Mohammed Zubair was sent to nine days of police custody in Uttar Pradesh’s Sitapur in a separate case. As per a Sitapur court’s order, Zubair has been sent to Uttar Pradesh police’s custody from 8 am on Friday, July 8, till the following Saturday, July 16.
Zubair was produced in the court of the Sitapur judicial magistrate on June 4, who sent him to 14 days' judicial custody. The Delhi Police took Zubair back to the national capital afterwards, as he has been remanded to judicial custody by a Delhi court.
The Uttar Pradesh police had registered an FIR in June against Zubair for a tweet calling three Hindu seers ‘hatemongers’, made amidst the controversy surrounding Nupur Sharma’s contentious remarks against Prophet Mohammed. Additional Superintendent of Police, Sitapur, NP Singh said the district police had issued a production warrant against Zubair in connection with a case registered at Khairabad. The FIR was lodged against Zubair under sections 295A (deliberate and malicious act intended to outrage religious feelings) of the Indian Penal Code and section 67 of the IT Act in Sitapur on a complaint by Hindu Sher Sena Sitapur district president Bhagwan Sharan on June 1.
On July 2, a Delhi court rejected Zubair’s bail plea and sent Zubair to 14 days of judicial custody. The Special Public Prosecutor had alleged that Zubair and Alt News received payments from foreign countries like Pakistan and Syria, and sought further time to investigate the same. However, days later, Alt News issued a statement categorically denying the allegations.
“The allegations claim that we have received funds from foreign sources from whom we cannot receive donations. These allegations are categorically false,” the statement said, adding, “Our payment platform through which we receive donations does not allow receipt of funds from foreign sources, and we have received donations from Indian bank accounts only.”