IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT ALLAHABAD
Siddhartha Varma, Yogendra Kumar Srivastava
Mohammed Zubair – Appellant
Versus
State Of Uttar Pradesh – Respondent
JUDGMENT :
Siddhartha Varma, J.
1. Heard Sri Dileep Kumar, learned Senior Advocate assisted by Sri Tanmay Sadh, learned counsel for the petitioner and Sri Manish Goyal, learned Additional Advocate General assisted by Sri Pankaj Saxena, Sri A.K. Sand, learned Government Advocate. Sri Kapil Tyagi, learned counsel for the informant was heard along with Sri Adhitya Srinivasan who appeared through Video Conference.
2. This writ petition has been filed with a prayer that the First Information Report dated 7.10.2024 giving rise to Case Crime No.992 of 2024 against the petitioner-Mohd. Zubair lodged under sections 196, 228, 299, 356(3), 351(2) and 152 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 and under section 66 of the Information Technology Act be quashed.
3. The brief facts leading to the lodging of the FIR are that on 3.10.2024, the petitioner had tweeted certain messages at 9.30 pm. Thereafter on 4.10.2024 he had again tweeted at 11 hours and 08 minutes and thereafter on 5.10.2024 he had again done so at 12.38 PM. Thereafter and as a result of the tweets, specifically the one that was made on 3.10.2024, in the night of 4.10.2024 at Dasna Devi Temple, certain persons attacked a temple. The FIR
Javed Ahmad Hajam vs. State of Maharashtra and another
Lovely Salhotra vs. State of NCT Delhi & Anr.
Ramji Lal Modi vs. State of U.P.
The State of Uttar Pradesh vs. Lalai Singh Yadav
Anuradha Bhasin vs. Union of India & Ors.
Kaushal Kishor vs. State of Uttar Pradesh & Ors.
Tehseen S. Poonawala vs. Union of India & Ors.
Amish Devgan vs. Union of India & Ors.
Dineshbhai Chandubhai Patel vs. State of Gujarat & Ors.
Rafiq Ahmedbhai Paliwala vs. State of Gujarat & Ors.
Somjeet Mallick vs. State of Jharkhand & Ors.
Vinod Raghuvanshi vs. Ajay Arora & Ors.
The court held that the intent behind tweets must be assessed carefully, and freedom of speech is subject to reasonable restrictions to maintain public order and national integrity.
(1) Existence of power of arrest must be distinguished from exercise of power of arrest – Exercise of power of arrest must be pursued sparingly.(2) Courts while imposing bail conditions must balance ....
Right to express one’s views is a protected and cherished right in our democracy. Merely because the point of view of Petitioner is extreme or harsh will not make it a hate speech as it is only expre....
The judgment emphasizes the importance of proximate and direct nexus between expression and public disorder, and the need for evidence to establish mens rea in cases involving incitement of violence.
Posting of offensive Tweet – Freedom of speech encompasses right to dissent, critique and express political discontent and criminal prosecution in matters of expression must be reserved only for case....
The court ruled it inappropriate to quash a FIR at the investigative stage unless a clear case for quashing is established, emphasizing police prerogative in investigating alleged offences.
Login now and unlock free premium legal research
Login to SupremeToday AI and access free legal analysis, AI highlights, and smart tools.
Login
now!
India’s Legal research and Law Firm App, Download now!
Copyright © 2023 Vikas Info Solution Pvt Ltd. All Rights Reserved.