ISIS module case: Court denies bail to accused who claimed to be schizophrenic

Mumbai, Sept 10 (PTI) A special court here has denied bail to an ISIS module case accused, who had sought the relief on the grounds of schizophrenia and other mental illnesses, suggesting that using sophisticated social media applications belies his claims of unsound mind.

A detailed order of the September 4 ruling became available on Wednesday.

Rejecting the bail plea of accused Tabish Siddiqui, special NIA court judge Chakor S Baviskar stated that the accused has been constantly using social media applications like Telegram, WhatsApp, and Virtual Private Network.

"If all this material has any indication, no person of sound mind would dare to call the present accused a person of unsound mind," the court said.

At least when he indulged in all the acts which certainly posed a great threat to the unity, integrity, security, and sovereignty of the country, he was determined and firm, the court stated.

Siddiqui has been in custody since his arrest on July 3, 2023, under stringent provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and the Indian Penal Code.

The investigating agency, NIA, has accused Siddiqui and others of actively supporting the proscribed terrorist organisation ISIS and propagating its ideology among "gullible Muslim youths".

The accused had planned to commit terror acts in India, the National Investigation Agency stated in the charge sheet.

Siddiqui's lawyer, Taraq Sayyed, argued that he is suffering from multiple psychological illnesses, including schizophrenia and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), and has been undergoing treatment since 2020.

He contended there was no evidence to link Siddiqui to any conspiracy to further terrorist activities or to prove his membership in a terrorist organisation.

The defence advocate argued that merely possessing extremist literature is not an offence and that the UAPA charges were not applicable.

Public prosecutor Sunil Gonsalves, representing NIA, told the court that Siddiqui actively supported radical Islamic Jihadi ideology, recruited and trained Muslim youth, published Jihadi articles, and possessed violent literature.

The prosecution refuted the claim of psychological illness, stating that medical examinations conducted every 48 hours during Siddiqui's custody from July 3, 2023, to July 17, 2023, found him medically fit with no psychotic symptoms.

The court ruled that the ground of insanity is prima facie a false ground.

It highlighted that there are more than sufficient reasonable grounds for believing that the accusation against the present accused are prima-facie true.

"Considering the overall nature of allegations and more particularly, huge amounts of incriminating material against the accused, if released on bail, in all probability, he would indulge in the same illegal activities," the court said.

Hence, the accused does not deserve bail, it added. PTI AVI NSK