Tweet case: Guj HC asks Setalvad to cooperate with police

The Gujarat High Court today asked social activist Teesta Setalvad to cooperate with the police in investigation against her for allegedly posting objectionable pictures of Hindu deities on micro blogging site Twitter in 2014.
The court of Justice A J Desai today orally asked Setalvad, who is represented by her lawyer Kalpesh Shastri, to cooperate with the police for investigation in an FIR filed against her.
The government pleader today told the court that Setalvad was not cooperating with the investigating officer.
Teesta's lawyer informed the the court that she has so far cooperated with the police after which the court posted the matter for further hearing in November.

The court was hearing her petition to quash the FIR filed against her for allegedly causing enmity between two religious groups and outraging religious feelings through her social media post.
The government pleader had earlier said that Setalvad had not deposited her laptop to the police through which the tweet was sent out.

Setalvad's lawyer had told the court that the laptop was stolen from the airport. Her lawyer also told the court that Setalvad has given statements to the police six times.
Chargesheet has not yet been filed in the case, the court has been told.
Ghatlodia police station here is probing the case against Setalvad after an FIR was filed against her in August 2014 by local Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader Raju Patel.

Setalvad had allegedly tweeted a photo-shopped picture of an ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) terrorist having morphed heads of Hindu Gods and goddesses killing an American journalist James Foley, drawing parallel between God and Goddess with ISIS extremists.
Setalvad had, however, later removed the posts from her Twitter account after people objected to it.
She was charged under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 153(a) for promoting enmity between two religious groups and section 205 (a) for committing a deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings by insulting religion or religious beliefs along with sections of the IT Act.

The High Court had in August 2015 exempted Setalvad from appearing in person before Ghatlodia police station every month while granting her anticipatory bail in connection with the FIR.