Ballia court grants bail to journalist held in UP board paper leak case

PTI, Apr 26, 2022, 8:09 AM IST

Representative Image (Source: YouTube)

Ballia (UP): A court here on Monday granted bail to one of the three journalists arrested in connection with the Uttar Pradesh Board of Secondary Education’s English paper leak case.

The lawyer of the journalists, Ashok Tiwari, said District Judge Ahmad Ansari on Monday, while hearing the bail plea of journalist Ajit Kumar Ojha, ordered that Ojha be released on bail.

He added that police in a report presented to the court on Monday have removed the IPC sections registered against him.

Three journalists Ajit Kumar Ojha, Digvijay Singh, and Manoj Gupta were arrested in connection with the case though police have not yet been able to specify their role.

Another case was also lodged against the three at Nagra and Ubhanv police stations.

Tiwari said the district judge had on Saturday approved the bail plea of the three journalists, and the police removed the IPC sections registered against them.

He added that sections of the IT Act and Examination Act are still imposed on the three journalists.

On March 30, the class 12 English exam of the Uttar Pradesh School Board was cancelled in 24 districts after the question paper was leaked, prompting Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to order invoking the stringent National Security Act in the case.

The cancelled examination was held again on April 13.

Ballia District Inspector of Schools (DIOS) Brajesh Mishra and the three journalists were among the 52 accused who were arrested in the case.

On the complaint of city magistrate Pradeep Kumar, a case was registered against Mishra and journalist Ojha.
Another case was registered against the three journalists in Nagra and Ubhanv police stations under the IPC, IT Act, and Examination Act.

Meanwhile, the president of Ballia tehsil of Shramjeevi Patrakar Union Karuna Sindhu Singh has termed the granting of bail as a victory for the journalists.

The Sanyukt Patrakar Sangharsh Morcha has decided to continue its agitation, and its office bearer Saurabh Singh said that the sequential fast (‘kramik anshan’) of the journalists will continue at the district collectorate compound.