New Delhi: The Karnataka High Court on Wednesday stayed further investigation in the FIR registered against Bharatiya Janata Party’s National Spokesperson Amit Malviya for his tweets on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.
The FIR mentions the particular description given to the video which has been tweeted.
A single judge bench of Justice M Nagaprasanna said that the tweet was against a leader of a political party and hence, it cannot be regarded as against a group/class or as promoting enmity between groups/classes so as to attract offence under Section 153A of IPC.
Advocate Tejasvi Surya, appearing for the petitioner, argued that the FIR was ‘politically motivated’ and voiced the apprehension of imminent arrest.
“By no stretch the tweet can be deemed to promote enmity between two groups/communities on the basis of language, religion, creed,” he said.
Listen in to Surya after the court order.
A case was registered on June 28 based on the complaint of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee member Ramesh Babu who alleged the saffron party leader promoted enmity and instigated people by posting a video on social media.
The complainant alleged that the tweet showed an animated video allegedly depicting Rahul Gandhi and Congress party in poor light.
According to the FIR, Malviya tweeted a video with captions, “Rahul Gandhi is dangerous and playing an insidious game” and “More dangerous are people who are pulling strings of #Raga like Sam P, staunchly anti-India, they leave no stone unturned to defame India overseas, just to embarrass Hon’ble PM @Narendramodi ji.” Malviya has been booked under sections 153(A), 120(B), 505(2) and 34 of the IPC which pertain to promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, and ‘doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony’ and conspiracy.
Soon after the FIR was registered, Malviya reposted the same tweet with a caption in Hindi, “Rahul Gandhi Videshi Taaqaton ka Mohra” (Rahul Gandhi a pawn of foreign forces).
Karnataka IT-BT Minister Priyank Kharge, who had accompanied Babu on June 19 to lodge the complaint, had said that the BJP cries foul whenever it faces the brunt of law.
“They (BJP) have a problem with following the law of the land and they have a problem with the Constitution. And if we enforce the law or the constitution they have a problem with that,” he alleged.
Priyank, who is the son of Congress chief M Mallikarjun Kharge further said: “I would like to ask the BJP, tell me which part of the FIR that has been lodged against Malviya with a malafide intention. Who is the creator of the video? Who is the one spreading the video? Who is getting the video to have enough traction on social media? Who is spreading these lies? I have promised the people of Karnataka that fake news will be reined in.”
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