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Teesta Setalvad has been in judicial custody since the police had seven days to question her, according to the Supreme Court, and is therefore "entitled to bail."
Digital Desk: Teesta Setalvad, who has been imprisoned since June on suspicion of "a plot to destabilize the Gujarat administration following the 2002 riots," was granted interim release today by the Supreme Court, which found the police had already had enough time to question her.
The court's tone echoed its statements from yesterday when it stated that there is "no wrongdoing in this case above court for which release cannot be given," even if "she is a woman."
She is expected to be released from jail tomorrow when all processes are completed.
After her bail request was rejected by a municipal court in Ahmedabad in July, she appealed to the Gujarat High Court, which on August 3 scheduled her hearing for six weeks later – a timing that the top court did not appreciate in its judgment today.
Her appeal for regular bail and quashing of the FIR, however, will be heard before the High Court. In its observations today, the Supreme Court bench led by Chief Justice UU Lalit stated, "The HC ought to have examined the application for temporary relief throughout the pendency of the issue."
The lawsuit against her is also linked to certain Supreme Court observations of June 24. She was detained barely two days after the court dismissed a petition filed by her and Zakia Jafri — whose husband, former MP Ehsan Jafri, was slain in the riots — challenging an inquiry that absolved PM Narendra Modi, the then-Chief Minister, of any culpability.
The bench then noted, given the state's claims, that this plea was "to keep the kettle boiling, evidently, for ulterior intent." It further stated that "all individuals implicated in such abuse of process must be brought to justice and dealt with in line with the law."
The police cited this as the foundation for the FIR against Ms. Setalvad.
"But the FIR contains nothing more than the court observations," her lawyer, Kapil Sibal, claims. He informed the court yesterday that she is accused of fabricating documents in order to file cases related to the 2002 riots, but the police have not indicated which documents she is accused of creating.
Cops even claim she preyed on the emotions of an old Zakia Jafri, although Ms. Jafri has denied this.
The court granted bail today, noting that the charges date from 2002 to 2012. "The investigating agency has benefited from custodial interrogation for seven days," stated the three-judge bench, which included Justices S Ravindra Bhat and Sudhanshu Dhulia and also included the CJI.
She had been imprisoned for more than two months, but the bench noted yesterday that no chargesheet had been submitted.
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