The Delhi High Court has given permission to a US citizen named Mohd. Yasin Patel to travel abroad for four weeks. Patel was convicted in 2003 under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA) and for sedition as a member of the banned organization SIMI. He wants to visit his sick father in Chicago. The court has set some conditions for his travel, including providing a personal bond of Rs 1 lakh and getting surety bonds from his family members.
Patel was arrested in 2002 for putting up posters with a slogan advocating the destruction of nationalism and the establishment of Khilafat near Jamia Milia Islamia University library. He was sentenced to five and seven years for these offenses, but the sentence was suspended in 2004 with a restriction on leaving Delhi without court permission.
The court acknowledged that Patel had followed previous travel permissions and had always returned within the granted time. If he fails to return on time this time, the personal surety bonds will be forfeited, and legal action may be taken, according to the court. The court also instructed the prosecution to release Patel’s passport and asked him to apply for a VISA to return to India.
