But Liberty Right Up Supreme Street December 17, 2020, 11:09 PM IST
Quick takes, analyses and macro-level views on all contemporary economic, financial and political events.
The Supreme Court can indeed respond where it is needed: to protect the constitutional rights of the citizen and guard against miscarriage of justice. And it did exactly that on Thursday when it upheld the September 1 Allahabad High Court verdict that called the detention of Dr Kafeel Khan under the National Security Act (NSA) ‘illegal’. Dr Khan had been arrested in January for an alleged ‘inflammatory’ speech last year at an Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) gathering against GoI’s Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019. He had been charged with ‘disturbing public order… and creating an atmosphere of fear and insecurity’. The apex court reiterated that the speech showed no effort to promote hate or violence.