JUDGMENT : 

CHANDRA DHARI SINGH, J.

Order on (Clarification of Order) No. IA/1/2026

1. The instant application has been preferred seeking following reliefs:-

"(i) Allow the present application and clarify that conditions 1 and 2 in paragraph no. 59 of the order dated 15.05.2020 passed in the instant case have not come into operation as the trial in Case No. 3672 of 2020, arising out of Case Crime No. 268 of 2020, Police Station Kotwali Ayodhya, District Faizabad/Ayodhya has not yet commenced, and that the said conditions will become operative only after the commencement of trial against the applicant.

(ii) In the alternative, modify the order dated 15.05.2020 passed in the instant case to the extent that conditions 1 and 2 in paragraph 59 of the said order be deleted.

(iii) During the pendency of the adjudication of the present application permit the applicant to travel to New York, USA from 28.09.2026 to 07.10.2026 for the reasons stated in accompanying affidavit."

2. Brief facts of the case are that the applicant is editor of online news portal "The Wire". In the FIR bearing Case Crime No. 268 of 2020, under Sections 188 & 505(2) I.P.C. at Police Station Kotwali Nagar, District Ayodhya, the allegations were made in the said FIR that the applicant had made a tweet on a website Twitter.com, which was allegedly defamatory in nature. The said FIR was also lodged on the report published by "The Wire" on 31.03.2020 titled as "Covid-19 Cases Spike in Nizzamuddin Nehru Stadium in Delhi to Become Quarantine Centre", which was also tweeted by the applicant on 31.03.2020 and 01.04.2020. The anticipatory bail application was filed by the applicant seeking anticipatory bail in connection with the aforesaid Case Crime No. 268 of 2020, Police Station Kotwali Nagar, District Ayodhya before this Court. In the said anticipatory bail application, it was categorically mentioned that the error in the aforesaid report was corrected as soon as it become known of the applicant and the incorrect version was deleted. This Court has allowed the anticipatory bail application and granted anticipatory bail to the applicant vide order dated 15.05.2020 with certain conditions.

3. Ms. Nitya Ramakrishnan, learned Senior Advocate appearing on behalf of the applicant submitted that the instant application is being filed seeking clarification of the order dated 15.05.2020 passed by this Court to the extent that the condition nos. 1 and 2 laid down in the paragraph no. 59 of the aforesaid order come into operation only after the commencement of trial against the applicant. It is also submitted that in the instant application, the applicant prays that he was not required to comply with the condition nos. 1 and 2 as laid down in paragraph no. 59 of the aforesaid anticipatory bail order dated 15.05.2020 as the proceedings before the trial court in Case No. 3672 of 2020, arising out of Case Crime No. 268 of 2020 are still at the stage of issuance of summons and the trial in the matter has not yet commenced, as charges has not been framed against the applicant till date. Learned Senior Counsel next submitted that the applicant is also praying for permission to travel abroad as per the invitation and scheduled programme, appended as Annexure Nos. A-4 and A-5 to the writ petition.

4. Learned Senior Counsel submitted that the offences, as alleged against the applicant, are either bailable or minor non-bailable offences with the most severe being Section 505(2) IPC, which carries a maximum punishment of up to three years’ of imprisonment. It is vehemently submitted that therefore the condition nos. 1 and 2 of paragraph no. 59 of the order dated 15.05.2020 may not be required or necessary in an offence of a minor nature. It is next submitted that the applicant is a respected journalist and founding editor of the news portal "The Wire". It is also submitted that the minor factual inaccuracy in the tweet was promptly clarified and corrected by the applicant himself. Learned Senior C