Ali Khan Mahmudabad, an associate professor and head of the political science department at Ashoka University, has been sent to judicial custody until May 27 by a Sonipat court. The action comes in connection with his social media commentary on Operation Sindoor, which authorities allege threatened national sovereignty.
Produced before the court on May 20 following the end of his two-day police remand, Mahmudabad faced a request from police for a seven-day extension. However, the court dismissed the plea and remanded him to judicial custody. His lawyer, Kapil Balyan, confirmed the decision, stating they opposed further police custody.
Mahmudabad was arrested on May 18 after two FIRs were filed in Sonipat’s Rai police station—one by Haryana Women’s Commission chairperson Renu Bhatia and another by a village sarpanch. The FIRs claim his post on Operation Sindoor posed a risk to India’s unity and integrity.
His arrest has stirred nationwide criticism. Senior Congress leader P. Chidambaram publicly questioned which part of Mahmudabad’s post warranted legal action, while Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera accused the government of hypocrisy—targeting peaceful dissenters while sparing its own ministers who have publicly belittled the armed forces.
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav also condemned the move, highlighting the growing intolerance toward academic voices. “There’s freedom for foul language from rulers but jail for truth-speakers,” he remarked in a poetic Hindi post.
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