Hate Speeches: SC Adjourns CPI(M) Leader Brinda Karat’s Plea for FIR Against BJP Leaders

The Supreme Court on Monday adjourned the hearing on CPI(M) leader Brinda Karat’s plea challenging the Delhi High Court’s dismissal of a petition against the trial court’s refusal to order the registration of an FIR against BJP leaders Anurag Thakur and Parvesh Verma for alleged hate speeches during anti-CAA protests.

The matter has been deferred until October 3, following a request for adjournment by Additional Solicitor General SV Raju.

A bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Pankaj Mithal made it clear that no further adjournments will be granted to the respondent in the case. On April 17, the Supreme Court had issued notice to the Delhi Police regarding Karat’s plea.

Last year, on June 13, the Delhi High Court had dismissed the petition filed by CPI(M) leaders Karat and KM Tiwari against the two BJP MPs for their alleged hate speeches. The high court had declined to interfere with the trial court’s decision, citing the requirement of obtaining sanction from the competent authority for FIR registration under the law.

The petitioners had contended in their complaint before the trial court that Thakur and Verma had incited people, leading to three shooting incidents at two different protest sites in Delhi. They alleged that during a rally in Rithala in January 2020, Thakur had encouraged the crowd to chant an incendiary slogan, “shoot the traitors,” and had criticized anti-CAA protesters at Shaheen Bagh. Verma was accused of making inflammatory remarks against Shaheen Bagh protesters on January 28, 2020.

The trial court had dismissed the petitioners’ complaint on August 26, 2021, on the grounds that it was not sustainable due to the absence of requisite sanction from the central government, which was the competent authority. In their complaint, Karat and Tiwari had sought FIRs against the two BJP leaders under various sections of the IPC, including 153-A, 153-B, and 295-A, among others. The offenses carried a maximum punishment of a seven-year jail term.