The Supreme Court on Friday quashed a First Information Report (FIR) registered by the Gujarat Police against Member of Parliament (MP) Imran Pratapgarhi over a poem uploaded by him on social media.
The Bench of Justice AS Oka and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan observed that the offence of promoting enmity between religious groups under Section 196 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) could not be invoked based on the standards of insecure people who took offence at every slight criticism or those who perceived every criticism as an attack on them.
This had to be judged on the point of courageous minds. The freedom of speech and expression triumphed over the restrictions permissible on the same, it noted.
Noting that the officers of Gujarat Police were bound to uphold the fundamental rights of the citizens, the Bench said that an offence registered on the basis of spoken or uttered words should come under Section 173(3) of BNSS, not Section 196 BNS.
The top court of the country, while terming free speech as the most cherished right, said that constitutional courts should be at the forefront to protect the constitutional rights.
During the course of hearings, the Bench had remarked that the poem was neither anti-religious, nor anti-national. It said the police officials must show some sensitivity and understand the meaning of freedom of speech and expression.
Pratapgarhi was booked by the Gujarat Police on the basis of a complaint filed by an advocate’s clerk, alleging that the MP had shared a video on social media featuring a poem “Ae khoon ke pyase baat suno” playing in the background.
The State Police had invoked Sections 197 (imputations prejudicial to national integration), 299 (deliberate acts intended to outrage religious feelings), and 302 (uttering words to wound religious sentiments) of the BNS against the Congress leader.
On January 17, the Gujarat High Court refused to quash the FIR. Pratapgarhi then moved the Apex Court.