Assam Court Grants Bail to IIT Bombay Scholar Kalparnab Gupta

Guwahati: A Silchar court granted bail to IIT Bombay research scholar Kalparnab Gupta on Tuesday. He spent eight days in judicial custody following his arrest by Cachar Police. The Chief Judicial Magistrate ordered his release against a surety of 10,000 rupees.

Cachar Police arrested Gupta on September 28. This followed a complaint from Ponkaj Das, an activist with the Bajrang Dal. The initial bail plea failed. The court originally held that his release might disrupt the investigation.

Gupta serves as the chief convenor of the Barak Union for Civil Liberties. The complaint alleged he shared content online that was "defamatory, hateful and communally provocative" toward the Bajrang Dal, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, and Hindu religious beliefs.

Silchar Police registered Case Number 870/2026. Charges include sections 353(2), 196(2), 299, and 356(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Advocate Nalinakhshya Nag handled the defense during the successful bail hearing.

Civil society groups in Silchar pushed back hard. They blasted the police action as arbitrary. These advocates argued that disagreements over social media activity belong in public debate rather than the criminal justice system.