A 19-year-old Pune student, arrested for a social media post concerning Indo-Pak hostilities, has been released from jail after the Bombay High Court granted her bail while rebuking the Maharashtra government for "ruining her life" and turning her into a "hardcore criminal".
The girl was released from the Yerwada Central Jail on Tuesday night following the HC's order, as per her lawyer.
In a rebuke to both the state and her educational institution, the court in its order on Tuesday also suspended the girl's rustication order issued by the Sinhgad Academy of Engineering.
The student, originally from Jammu and Kashmir, moved to Pune in 2023 to pursue the Bachelor of Engineering (Information Technology) degree course from the Sinhgad Technical Education Society.
On May 7, the girl shared a post on Instagram from an account called 'Reformistan', which criticised the Indian government during the Indo-Pak hostilities amid Operation Sindoor.
Within two hours, she realised her mistake and deleted the post after receiving a barrage of threats.
The Kondhwa police in Pune registered a First Information Report (FIR) against her on May 9 and she was arrested. The girl was later sent to judicial custody and was lodged at the Yerwada prison.
She then moved the HC through her lawyer Farhana Shah, challenging the rustication order and also sought quashing of the FIR and to be released on bail.
HC calls it 'absolutely shocking'
On Tuesday, the HC came down heavily on the government for its "absolutely shocking" and "radical" response to the girl's social media post.
The court ordered for the girl to be released forthwith so that she can appear for her ongoing semester exams.
Pursuant to the court order, the girl was released from jail at around 9.30 pm on Tuesday, Shah said.
The girl's family was present outside the jail at the time, the lawyer said.
The court had also directed the educational institution to provide the girl a hall ticket so that she could appear for the exams.
It said the college shall, if necessary, provide security and arrange a separate class for her to appear for the exams.
The court also asked the police to ensure the girl is given adequate police protection when she goes to the college, considering the fear expressed by her.
Shah said the girl would go to the college on Wednesday to take her hall ticket and finish other formalities so that she can appear for the remainder of her papers scheduled from Thursday (May 29 to June 3).
Due to her arrest, the student missed two papers, the lawyer said. She had sought a direction from the HC to the college to permit her to take the two papers as a special case.
The college said it cannot take the decision to do so as the examinations were conducted by a Pune-based university.
The court then permitted the girl to file an application seeking such permission from the university.
In its May 9 rustication letter, the college stated that since the girl had brought disrepute to the institution, it was justified to preserve the institution's ethos.
It further said the petitioner had anti-national sentiments and posed a risk to the campus community and society.
The HC, however, questioned the college for its "hurried" decision to rusticate the student, and said its approach should have been to reform the girl and not punish her.
The court said her arrest should not have occurred, especially since she had promptly deleted the post, expressed remorse and apologised.
Cautioning the student to act responsibly in the future and refrain from uploading such posts, the high court passed its sternest remarks for the state's handling of the situation.
