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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Maharashtra Samajwadi Party leader Azmi held guilty of hate speech-Rebecca Samervel

Maharashtra Samajwadi Party leader Azmi held guilty of hate speech-Rebecca Samervel

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published Published on May 1, 2012   modified Modified on May 1, 2012

A local court on Monday convicted Samajwadi Party state president and MLA Abu Asim Azmi and four others of making inflammatory speeches to incite communal violence during a rally in 2000.

Metropolitan magistrate Sanjashree Gharat of the Mazgaon court sentenced Azmi, Waqarunnissa Ansari, Lalbahadur Singh, Ehsanullah Khan and Ali M Shamsi to two years' imprisonment. When the five sought time to appeal in the sessions court, the magistrate allowed suspension of the order, enabling them to leave after they paid the fine and furnished personal sureties.

The trial and conviction were under the IPC's section 153 A (inciting communal passions), 153 B (making imputations and assertions prejudicial to national integration) and 153 (wantonly causing provocation with the intent to cause riot). The maximum sentence is three years' imprisonment and a fine.

According to the prosecution, Azmi made incendiary remarks while addressing a rally at Mastan Talao, Nagpada, on February 24, 2000, when he was an SP corporator. The other four stood accused of organizing the rally and being involved in the gathering. The issue was raised by the Shiv Sena and the BJP in the state assembly; MLAs of the parties stalled proceedings, demanding action against Azmi.

The police sought the state government's permission to prosecute the five and received a go-ahead. According to public prosecutor Varsha Doshi, who stepped into the trial in 2011, the case was based on documentary as well as forensic evidence. The government had sent an audio cassette of Azmi's speech to the Central Bureau of Investigation for a voice authenticity test. "We had an audio recording of the speech, which we matched with a pre-recorded CD of the voice samples of the accused. This corroborated the corresponding evidence of the prosecution," said Doshi.

While five prosecution witnesses-including the investigating officer and four other police officers-were examined, the defence did not present any witnesses in the case. The chargesheet, filed in 2000 itself, is about 60 pages long. Though Azmi and the four others were arrested at the time, they were released on bail by the police themselves.

Referring to the delay in the verdict, Doshi said, "The trial was stalled on several occasions because the accused would not attend the hearings. It was restarted in 2005, but once again the accused failed to be present in court. Only in 2011 was the case heard continuously."

Outside the court, Azmi expressed disappointment over the verdict. "I will file an appeal in the higher court and am hopeful of getting justice." Referring to the 2000 speech, he said it was not made against any religion or community and he had no intentions of spreading communal disharmony. He said he had only spoken against certain atrocities and in doing so he was just exercising his fundamental rights.

The Times of India, 1 May, 2012, http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/Maharashtra-Samajwadi-Party-leader-Azmi-held-guilty-of-hate-speech/articleshow/12943463.cms


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