The Delhi High Court Wednesday sought a response from Delhi Police on a bail application of an accused, arrested in a case concerning alleged communal sloganeering at an event at Jantar Mantar last month. Justice Mukta Gupta issued notice to the police on the bail plea by Sushil Kumar and sought a status report.

The judge posted the matter for the next hearing on October 26.

The accused, who is the chief of an organisation called ‘Hindu Army’, was arrested from Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh on August 20 and is in judicial custody since then.

On September 23, a trial court here had dismissed his bail application, saying that the investigation was at a crucial juncture and there was a strong possibility of him interfering in the investigation of the case and/or influencing and threatening the witnesses.

Additional sessions judge Anil Antil had stated that the video clip and transcript on record were “explicitly infested with communal overtures having the tendency to incite communal hatred, disharmony, and ill-will between other section of the community” and the accused “has not even specifically disputed his identity in the alleged clip.”

“The allegations are serious in nature, the offence alleged is also no less severe than the nature of the accusations,” the trial court had stated.

Delhi police had opposed the bail plea of Sushil Kumar on the ground that the video clips clearly showed that he was delivering the allegedly inflammatory speech at the event held on August 8.

It was claimed that the objectionable slogans and hatred/inflammatory speeches were delivered by the applicant/accused against a particular community as part of a well-hatched conspiracy.

The accused had contended before the trial court that the video of the alleged incident was an “edited record” that was prepared to intentionally and deliberately book him.