NAVI MUMBAI(India),Jan22: PhD mathematics scholar and lecturer
Vikram Buddhi, who has been jailed in the United States for allegedly threatening to kill
former president George W Bush, plans to appeal in the
US Supreme Court soon. Recently, Buddhi's distraught father Captain B K Subbarao wrote to Indian and US authorities explaining in legal terms how his son was denied a fair trial since the time he was arrested on April 14, 2006, by the
United States Secret Service agents."Buddhi has served the 57-month jail term in the US. Now, he wants to appeal in the US Supreme Court to highlight the discrimination against him in the lower trial court. By reading the indictment (charge), one can see that the trial was faulty," said Captain Subbarao, former naval officer and now a Supreme Court advocate.In 2006, Buddhi was held from
Purdue University after Internet messages were posted on a portal that called on the people of
Iraq to kill former US president George W Bush and other leaders. "Even if one assumes that Buddhi was the author of the online messages, why is the term 'Internet messages'
missing from the 11-count indictment against him," said Captain Subbarao. "The indictment merely states that Buddhi 'did threaten to kill' but nowhere mentions how he threatened-whether orally or in writing. If the words 'Internet messages' had been included, the case would have come under command of the First Amendment (freedom of speech), as Internet is treated as 'speech' in the US," reasoned Subbarao. "Even in the online messages, the author has not directly threatened the former president or others, but 'called upon the Iraqi people to kill US leaders' ", he added. The
US apex court has earlier stated that: "What is a threat must be distinguished from what is constitutionally protected speech" while ruling in a separate case.
