A scribe is charged in a SIA case by a court in Jammu with authoring and publishing a "seditious" essay

For the first time, a designated court in this country has filed accusations against a journalist and a university researcher for writing and posting a "seditious" piece on a news website.

The State Investigation Agency (SIA) looked into the case against the detained journalist Peerzada Fahad Shah and the Kashmir University professor Abdul Ala Fazili, and it was successful in advancing it to the point of formulating charges, according to an official.

He said that on Thursday, Shah and Fazili's charges were prepared by Ashwani Kumar, the special judge appointed under the NIA Act.

According to the official, the case relates to information that was delivered to the CIJ police station (SIA-Jammu) on April 4 of last year, along with a copy of an article by Fazili titled "The Shackles of Slavery Will Break," which was published in the online magazine (portal) "The Kashmir Walla" by its editor-in-chief-cum-director Shah.

"The pair revived a platform resurrecting the narrative in favour of the terrorist and separatist ecology with the help of an active plot and Pakistan. With the assistance of illegal money acquired from adversarial foreign agencies and outlawed terrorist organisations, they were disseminating an anti-Indian narrative through digital platforms while operating under cover and camouflage "added he.

After hearing the arguments, the court determined that there was enough evidence gathered by the SIA to bring charges against Fazili and Shah.

Fazili has been charged under sections 121 (aiding in the waging of war against the Government of India), 153B (imputations, assertions prejudicial to national integration), and 201 (causing disappearance of evidence of offence) of the Indian Penal Code as well as sections 13 (unlawful activity) and 18 (conspiracy, advocating, abetting, inciting, facilitating, or encouraging a terrorist act or any preparation to commit a terrorist act) of the Un (IPC).

According to the official, Shah has been charged under sections 13 and 18 of the UAPA, 121 and 153B of the IPC, and sections 35 (accepting foreign contributions in violation of FCRA provisions, or any order or rule therein) and 39 (violation of FCRA by a company tantamount to violation by the persons in charge or responsible for business of such company).

He said that the investigation had shown the suspects were in contact with both separatists on the other side of the border and certain local terrorists.

The official said that the group's literature openly supported terrorism and praised terrorists with the express purpose of radicalising young people in Jammu and Kashmir and tempting and inciting them to join separatist and terrorist organisations.

He said that on October 13 of last year, after obtaining the required government approval, the SIA filed a chargesheet in the matter in the special judge's court.