Pinjra Tod Activists Devangana Kalita, Natasha Narwal Granted Bail

The Delhi High Court on Tuesday granted bail to Pinjra Tod activists Devangana Kalita, Natasha Narwal and Jamia student Asif Iqbal Tanha in connection to the Delhi riots case who were arrested under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

Devangana Kalita and Natasha Narwal were arrested a year ago in the Delhi riots case. Activists and various civil society groups came together last week to mark a year of the arrest of the Pinjra Tod activists.

Natasha Narwal and Devangana Kalita were arrested in May 2020 for allegedly being part of a premeditated conspiracy behind the communal violence that broke out in northeast Delhi in February 2020 during protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA).

In the second wave of Covid-19 in May, Natasha Narwal lost her father while she was still in prison. She was granted bail after the demise of her father, Mahavir Narwal, to allow her to perform his last rites, a report of India Today said.

She surrendered herself soon after performing the last rites of her father and returned to the Tihar Jail, where she had been lodged for over a year.

In a statement, Pinjra Tod had said last week that Natasha Narwal and Devangana Kalita were arrested because they raised their voice to demand equal and substantive citizenship for all.

"Both of them were granted bail in every case against them yet they remain imprisoned on account of the UAPA under FIR 59, an extraordinary law which presumes guilt rather than innocence and accords the State the power to incarcerate people even before the trial commences," Pinjra Tod had said.

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