While hearing a plea of Alt News co-founder and editor Mohammed Zubair, the Allahabad High Court on Wednesday, December 18, questioned the fact checker on choosing to post his concern on social media over approaching the police.
The case was being heard by a division bench headed by Justice Siddhartha Varma and Justice Ram Manohar Narayan Mishra who were reviewing Zubair’s plea to quash an FIR registered against him over an X post regarding a hate speech delivered by far-right Ghaziabad’s Dasna temple head priest Yati Narsinghanand.
“If this person (referring to Yati Narsinhanand) is acting funny, then instead of going to the police, will you act more funny? Have you lodged an FIR against him? I will look at your conduct. If you don’t like his (Yati) speech, face, you should file an FIR against him,” the division bench orally remarked.
Senior counsel appearing for Mohammed Zubair argued that his client had exercised his right to freedom of speech by highlighting Yati’s conduct. The counsel stated that many had tweeted about the alleged speech in question and Zubair had not said anything different.
Unimpressed by Zubair’s counsel, the bench stated that he should have approached the police instead of choosing social media platforms to voice his concern.
“Come to the court then…you will go to social media handle… create social disharmony?…Whatever he (Yati) says, you cannot go to social media…Who denies that Twitter cannot be used, but you cannot use it to instigate unrest.. glancing at the tweet shows that you are trying to create unrest,” the bench remarked.
Questioning the Additional Advocate General (AAG), representing the State, the bench asked why Section 152 of the BNS was charged against Mohammed Zubair.
It should be noted that Section 152 of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhitha (BNS) addresses actions that threaten the sovereignty, unity, and integrity of India.
Responding, the AAG claimed that freedom of speech is not absolute and can be curtailed under Article 19(2) of the Indian Consitution.
The next hearing is scheduled to take place on December 20.
What is Mohammed Zubair vs Yati Narsinghanand case
On September 29, Yati Narsinghanand delivered a speech where he told his followers to burn effigies of Prophet Muhammad instead of the demon king Ravana.
His remarks created widespread uproar amongst the Muslim community with FIRs being lodged in Ghaziabad, Maharashtra and Hyderabad.
Mohammed Zubair had tweeted about the video questioning Yati Narsinghanand’s intentions and accused him of repeatedly making derogatory remarks against Muslims and provoking a riot-like situation.
Subsequently, an FIR was lodged on October 7 by Udita Tyagi, general secretary of the Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati Foundation.
Tyagi alleged that Mohammed Zubair had shared the video with the intention of inciting communal disharmony. The FIR also mentioned the principal of Darul Uloom Deobandv Maulana Arshad Madani and All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi.
The Ghaziabad police then charged Zubair under Sections 196 (promoting enmity on religious grounds), 228 (fabricating false evidence), 299 (outraging religious feelings by insulting religion or religious beliefs), 356(3) (defamation), and 351(2) (criminal intimidation) of the BNS.
