The Allahabad High Court stayed Mohd Zubair’s arrest

PRAYAGRAJ The Allahabad High Court on Friday adjourned the arrest of Alt News co-founder Mohammed Zubair till January 6 in connection with an FIR accusing him of inciting enmity between religious groups following a complaint filed by an associate of priest Yati Narsinghanand.

A bench comprising Justice Siddhartha Varma and Justice Nalin Kumar Srivastava also barred Zubair from leaving the country till January 6, the next date of hearing.

In her complaint, Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati Trust general secretary Udita Tyagi alleged that Zubair had released a video of Narsinghanand’s old program on October 3 with the intention of inciting violence against him.

Last month, the Ghaziabad police filed an FIR against Zubair under sections 196 (inciting enmity between different groups on religious grounds), 228 (fabrication of false evidence), 299 (intentional and malicious acts aimed at hurting religious sentiments), 356(3). (defamation) and 351(2) (punishment for criminal intimidation) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

“Since the plaintiff’s lawyer gave an undertaking not to leave the country, we also assume that the plaintiff should not leave the country. He can surrender his passport to the Commissioner of Police in Ghaziabad,” the court further ordered.

The court ordered the state government to file a detailed counter-affidavit within three weeks. He also directed the whistleblower’s counsel to file a counter affidavit within the same period. After that, the court scheduled the next hearing for January 6, 2025.

In his petition to the high court, Zubair asked the court to quash the FIR and protect it from coercive measures.