Supreme Court
New Delhi: The Supreme Court said on Tuesday, November 25, that it is not inclined to either legislate or monitor every incident of hate speech across the country, as legislative measures, police stations, and high courts are already there in place.
The observations came from a bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta that was hearing an application raising the issue of alleged calls for the social and economic boycott of a particular community.
The petitioners cited instances of systematic ostracisation of Muslims in various states, highlighting a disturbing trend.
“We are not legislating in the garb of this petition. Rest assured, we are not inclined to either legislate or monitor every small incident which takes place in X, Y, Z pocket of this country,” the court said.
The bench added that petitioners can instead approach authorities, high courts, or police stations to file complaints.
“How can this court continue to monitor all such instances all over the country? You approach the authorities. Let them take action; otherwise, go to the high court,” the bench told the counsel of the petitioners.
In 2018, however, the apex court had condemned hate crimes and declared it the state’s “sancrosanct duty” to protect the dignity of individuals from hate crimes.
Advocate Nizam Pasha, representing the petitioners, referred to an affidavit about the Minister of Assam who had shared a post with the caption, “Bihar approves of Gobi farming,” after BJP won in the Bihar state elections.
Pasha alleged the post was made referencing the 1989 Bhagalpur massacre, when several Muslims were killed and their bodies buried in a cauliflower field.
The court said, “Whichever state you have a problem with, you approach the jurisdictional high court for appropriate relief.”
(With inputs from PTI)
This post was last modified on December 2, 2025 6:08 pm