Haridwar Dharam Sansad: Supreme Court issues notice to State, Delhi Police

  

On Wednesday, the Apex Court issued notice to Uttarakhand and Delhi Police on a plea by journalist Qurban Ali, seeking action against perpetrators of hate speech against minority community at Dharam Sansad in Haridwar & at a congregation in Delhi.

The plea, filed by journalist Qurban Ali & Ex-Patna HC Judge & Senior Lawyer Anjana Prakash, has sought a direction for an "independent, credible & impartial investigation" by an SIT into the incidents of hate speeches against the Muslim community.

Appearing for the petitioner, Senior Lawyer Kapil Sibal said the Dharam Sansad is going to organise another congregation at Aligarh & should be restrained from making hate speech there while the Top Court is seized of the matter.

Sibal says when the election process is on unless preventive detention steps are taken against Dharam Sansad participants the country would slip on its ethos.

The Supreme Court has sought responses of Uttarakhand & Delhi Police to Ali's petition in 10 days & asked the petitioner to bring it to the notice of authorities concerned about Dharam Sansad scheduled to be held at Aligarh on January 23 & his apprehensions about breach of laws & Supreme Court judgments.

On Monday, a bench headed by the CJI had taken note of the submissions of senior advocate Kapil Sibal that no action has been taken against those who made the hate speeches despite registration of FIR by Uttarakhand Police.

Sibal said, "I have moved this PIL in respect of what happened in Dharam Sansad in Haridwar on December 17 & 19 (last year). We are living in difficult times where slogan in country has changed from 'Satyamev Jayate' to 'Shastramev Jayate'".

The FIR has been filed but no arrests have been made, the senior lawyer had said, adding that no action would be possible without the intervention of this court.

The bench had said that it would take up the matter for hearing.

The petition, which specifically referred to the "hate speeches" delivered between the "17th & 19th of December 2021 at Haridwar & Delhi", has also sought compliance of apex court's guidelines to deal with such speeches.

One event was organised in Haridwar by Yati Narsinghanand & the other in Delhi by 'Hindu Yuva Vahini' allegedly "calling for genocide of members" of a community, it said.

The Uttarakhand Police filed the FIR on December 23 under various provisions of the Indian Penal Code against some persons including Sant Dharamdas Maharaj, Sadhvi Annapoorna alias Pooja Shakun Pandey, Yati Narsinghanand & Sagar Sindhu Maharaj.

A similar complaint was filed with the Delhi Police for the second event organised in the national capital.

The plea said that no effective steps have been taken by Uttarakhand & Delhi police.

Till date no FIR has been lodged by the Delhi Police despite calls for ethnic cleansing at the event organised here, it said.

Besides this petition, another plea has also been filed in the apex court by the Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind to ban anti-Muslim speeches & programmes like the 'Dharma Sansad'.

The plea has demanded stern legal action against those who allegedly threatened to massacre Muslims & said it was not just a matter of religion but of the Constitution, law, unity & integrity of the country.

The plea stated, "Hate speeches & statements against Muslims have suddenly intensified in the country in recent times".

 Source Link

 

Social media is bold.

Social media is young.

Social media raises questions.

 Social media is not satisfied with an answer.

Social media looks at the big picture.

 Social media is interested in every detail.

social media is curious.

 Social media is free.

Social media is irreplaceable.

But never irrelevant.

Social media is you.

(With input from news agency language)

 If you like this story, share it with a friend!  

We are a non-profit organization. Help us financially to keep our journalism free from government and corporate pressure