Shirin Dalvi, Editor-in-Hiding, Gets a Little Relief in Court

Shirin Dalvi, the 46-year-old journalist who has been forced to go into hiding after her newspaper published a cartoon of the Prophet Mohammed, cannot be arrested, be summoned for questioning, or be subjected to any action against her wishes, till day after tomorrow, the Bombay High Court said today.

The Mumbai Police has argued against bail for Ms Dalvi, but was over-ruled recently by the court.  

"The petitioner cannot stay at home and her children cannot go to college. Her life is in danger. Therefore we ask this court to pass orders so that no further coercive steps may be taken against petitioner," Ms Dalvi's lawyer successfully argued today. The case will next be heard on Wednesday.  

Ms Dalvi was the editor of the Urdu-language newspaper, 'Avadhnama'; she was arrested and released on bail for publishing a cover of Charlie Hebdo, which featured a  cartoon of the Prophet Mohammed. The next day, Ms Dalvi's paper printed an apology but the Mumbai office was closed down soon after, allegedly in response to protests and threats. Ms Dalvi has told NDTV, "It was a mistake and I had no intention to hurt the feelings of my community".  She said she didn't understand what was written in French on the Charlie Hebdo cover that her paper reproduced.

Charlie Hebdo was the target of a terror attack in Paris last month.  12 people were killed.

Six criminal cases have been filed against Ms Dalvi, accusing her of actions that deliberately sought to offend religious sentiments. Ms Dalvi has asked for the cases against her to be dismissed.