Journalist Siddique Kappan, who was released on a five-day interim bail to see his ailing mother, has returned to Mathura jail following the completion of the conditional relief that allowed only his near ones to be with him.

The visit, which was kept under wraps because of the gag order against speaking to reporters, began when Kappan was flown down to Kozhikode on February 17 evening and taken to his elder brother’s home in Vengara, Malappuram, the following morning, his wife Raihanath told The Telegraph on Tuesday.

“As per the order, we were not supposed to know about his arrival. But since we were yearning to see him after more than three months in jail, it was such a relief and excitement at the same time,” said Raihanath.

The Supreme Court had on February 15 allowed the interim bail application filed by Kerala Union of Working Journalists that cited failing health of Kappan’s 90-year-old mother Khadija Kutty who has been bed-ridden.

The interim bail was sought after a video call allowed by the court for Kappan to communicate with his hospitalised mother did not yield any result as she was in a semi-conscious state.

“It was such an emotional moment for all of us. I can’t really explain how happy we all were to see him. But at the same time we had painfully reconciled to the fact that he would have to return to jail on completion of the interim bail,” the wife said.

“Umma (Kappan’s mother) started responding to Siddique (Kappan). She even started smiling and uttered a few words,” Raihanath said, alluding to his mother who had to be hospitalised after her health condition deteriorated in January.

“When he left (on Sunday) umma asked him where he was going. He told her he was heading to Kozhikode for work. She then went silent. So I feel she is aware of what’s happening and she may have overhead us talking about the case and jail,” said Raihanath, who led a couple of protests seeking justice for her jailed husband.

The court had ordered Kappan not to meet journalists or even post anything on social media during the bail period allowed entirely on humanitarian grounds.

The court had directed Uttar Pradesh police to take care of his transport to and fro from his native village and ordered Kerala police to ensure adequate security is provided.

Six policemen from Uttar Pradesh had accompanied him to Vengara where 25 cops from Kerala stood guard until he was taken back on Sunday evening.

Although, he was technically at home for four days as almost a day was consumed in travel, Raihanath thanked the apex court and police department of Uttar Pradesh and Kerala for ensuring everything went well.

“The policemen who accompanied Siddique from Uttar Pradesh were well behaved and made us comfortable,” she said.

“He called me at around 10am yesterday (Monday) and said he reached the prison at 2am,” she said pinning her hope on the plea for regular bail coming up in the Supreme Court on March 2.

Kappan was arrested on October 5, 2020, along with three others while on his way to Hathras, Uttar Pradesh, where a Dalit teen had been gang-raped and murdered.

Kappan, a father of three, is the secretary of the New Delhi unit of the Kerala Union of Working Journalists. He is a retainer of Malayalam news portal azhimukham.com.

Kappan is accused of planning to foment trouble and being a member of the extremist Popular Front of India (PFI), which he denies.