Sidheeq Kappan is an Indian journalist from

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

who had been imprisoned in October 2020 after being charged under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act. He was arrested while on his way to

Hathras Hathras is a historical city in Uttar Pradesh, India. It is also the headquarters of Hathras district, formed on 3 May 1997 by merging parts of Aligarh, Mathura and Agra. It is a part of the Aligarh Division. The primary spoken language is a ...

to report on the story of the 19-year-old Dalit woman who died after being allegedly gang-raped by four men. Before his imprisonment, Kappan was a regular contributor to the news portal ''Azhimukham''.

Arrest and detention

On 5 October 2020, Kappan, along with three others, were traveling to Hathras to report on the

2020 Hathras gang rape and murder On 14 September 2020, a 19-year-old Dalit woman was allegedly gang-raped in Hathras district, Uttar Pradesh, India, by four upper caste men. She died two weeks later in a Delhi hospital. Initially, it was reported that one accused had tried t ...

. His car was stopped at a toll plaza in Mathura and all four were arrested by the Uttar Pradesh Police. The First Information Report submitted against him in Mathura court charged him with Section 124A (sedition), 153A (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, etc.) and 295A (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs) of the

Indian Penal Code The Indian Penal Code (IPC) is the official criminal code of India. It is a comprehensive code intended to cover all substantive aspects of criminal law. The code was drafted on the recommendations of first law commission of India established in ...

and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and the

Information Technology Act The Information Technology Act, 2000 (also known as ITA-2000, or the IT Act) is an Act of the Indian Parliament (No 21 of 2000) notified on 17 October 2000. It is the primary law in India dealing with cybercrime and electronic commerce. Secon ...

. In February 2021, Kappan received five days' interim bail to visit his ailing mother, Khadeeja Kutty. The bail allowed only his close family to meet him. His mother later passed away in June 2021, after succumbing to illnesses. In April 2021, Kappan tested positive for

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. He was shifted to a hospital within the prison premises in Mathura. When his health worsened, he was moved to K.M Medical College in Mathura, where the attending doctors declared him "COVID negative". He was then returned to Mathura jail. After the intervention of the Supreme Court, he was relocated to the

All India Institute of Medical Sciences The All India Institutes of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) is a group of autonomous government public medical universities of higher education under the jurisdiction of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare , Government of India. These institutes ha ...

for further treatment. In May 2021, he tested positive for COVID-19 again. Kappan was granted bail on 9 September 2022, but would remain in jail due to a

Enforcement Directorate The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) is a law enforcement agency and economic intelligence agency responsible for enforcing economic laws and fighting economic crime in India. It is part of the Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance, Gover ...

case. On 23 December 2022, Kappan got bail from the Allahabad High Court in the case filed by ED under PMLA. After getting out of jail, he said that the police tortured him during the detention to get

forced confessions A forced confession is a confession obtained from a suspect or a prisoner by means of torture (including enhanced interrogation techniques) or other forms of duress. Depending on the level of coercion used, a forced confession is not valid in re ...

out of him.

Protests

Several protests were conducted in India, demanding the release of Kappan from prison. International press organizations have also expressed concern over the jailing of Kappan.

Release

In February 2023, Kappan was released from prison after more than two years following his arrest. In December 2022, the Allahabad High Court granted him bail. However, it took over a month to secure his release due to procedural delays. After walking out of the prison, Kappan stated that he would continue to fight the charges against him.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kappan, Sidheeq Imprisoned journalists Indian journalists 1980s births Living people