Sharjeel Imam's mother says son's statement 'taken out of context', accuses police of harassing family

Amid controversies surrounding recent statements made by former JNU student Sharjeel Imam, a media statement issued by his mother, Afshan Rahim, has now grabbed headlines. The letter, addressed by Mrs. Rahim to media agencies, accuses the police and the state authorities of harassing threatening Imam's family members.

For the uninitiated, Sharjeel Imam is currently in the news for reportedly saying "Assam should be cut off from the rest of India" in a speech delivered at the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) campus on January 16. He has been booked by the UP Police, Assam Police, and now the Delhi Police.

However, in the media statement, Imam's mother came to her son's defense and clearly mentioned that Sharjeel's statement was being "twisted" and "taken out of context" by the media. She also alleged the police and state authorities of harassing and threatening Imam's family.

"The constant threat and abuse has traumatized his elderly mother and has scared his other family members. We believe in the rule of law and every cooperation has been promised. This highhandedness (by the police and the state authorities) violates the basic human rights of the family members including and not limited to his elderly mother. We demand that the police refrains from indulging in such actions," stated the letter by Afshan Rahim, the mother of Sharjeel Imam. Mrs. Rahim resides in the Kako town of Bihar's Jehanabad district, from where the media statement is signed.

A series of videos recently went viral on social media where it appeared that Imam, the chief co-ordinator of the protest at Shaheen Bagh, was saying, "If all of us come together, we can separate the Northeast from India. If we cannot do it permanently, then at least for 1-2 months we can do this. It will take the administration at least one month to disperse all of them."

Delhi Police on Sunday booked Sharjeel Imam for allegedly delivering inflammatory speeches against the Citizenship Amendment Act and the proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC).

The case by Delhi Police has been registered under IPC sections 124 A (an offence by words, either spoken or written causes disaffection against Government established by law), 153 A (promoting enmity between different religious groups with an intent to create disharmony) and 505 (statements conducing to public mischief).

A case of sedition has already been filed by Uttar Pradesh police for the speech. Aligarh SSP Akash Kulhari said on Sunday that two teams have been sent to arrest Imam.

"We are working in coordination with Delhi Police and Bihar Police," he said. 

The Assam police have also filed an FIR under the anti-terror law Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

"He had previously delivered one such speech in Jamia Millia Islamia on December 13 last year and thereafter one even more inflammatory against the government which is being widely circulated on social media," police was quoted as saying by PTI. 

These speeches have the "potential to harm the religious harmony" and the unity and integrity of India, police said.