Islamic activist Inshan Ishmael and two others pleaded not guilty yesterday to charges of leading and participating in a march without permission from the Commissioner of Police.
The trio—Ishmael, 48, Davindra Partap, 28, and Wazim Daniel, 36—appeared before Chaguanas magistrate Wendy Dougdeen-Bally just before noon.
Ishmael was charged with leading the march, while the other two men were charged for participating in a march without permission from the Commissioner of Police.
The three were represented by attorney Shiva Boodoo, who held on for their initial attorneys Rajiv Persad, Faraz Mohammed and Chase Pegus.
The matter went for mention to set a date for trial on November 3.
If found guilty, the three could each face a maximum fine of $4,000 or 18 months imprisonment.
On Friday, they were arrested while leading a demonstration outside of the T&T Guardian office in Chaguanas against columnist Kevin Baldeosingh and Editor-in-Chief Orin Gordon.
The three were taken to the Chaguanas Police Station where they were charged.
Ishmael was granted station bail of $20,000. Partap and Daniel each received $15,000 station bail.
Yesterday, outside the court there were just a handful of supporters.
After Ishmael, Daniel and Partap appeared before the magistrate they were placed in a cell as they waited for the signing of some final documents that would allow them to go free.