Sharjeel Imam, the research scholar of Delhi's prestigious Jawaharlal Nehru University accused of sedition, has been arrested from his hometown - Bihar's Jehenabad. A spate of police cases were registered against Sharjeel Imam after a video of him allegedly making anti-national comments was widely circulated online. His arrest took place hours after the Bihar police picked up his brother for questioning.
Sharjeel Imam will be brought to Delhi after which his questioning will begin, sources said. His family, sources said, has denied the allegations of sedition, saying his comments were taken out of context. Appearing before the media earlier today, his mother said he was "not a law-breaker and would surrender to the investigating agencies".
"Nobody should do anything that is not in the interest of the nation. The accusations and the arrest - the court will decide on the matter," Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar was quoted as saying by news agency ANI after the arrest.
A sedition case was registered against Sharjeel Imam in Delhi for his alleged call to sever the whole of the northeast from the rest of India after the imposition of the Citizenship Amendment Act or CAA. He is also wanted in other states, including Assam, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.
By last evening, the hunt for him had spread to Mumbai, Patna and Delhi as the Delhi Police pushed in five teams from its Crime Branch.