SC notice on plea against Haridwar Dharm Sansad hate speeches
Jan 12, 2022
New Delhi [India], January 12 : The Supreme Court on Wednesday issued notice to Uttarakhand and Delhi police on a petition seeking independent inquiry into the Haridwar Dharm Sansad speeches allegedly inciting violence against minority community.
A Bench of Chief Justice of India NV Ramana, Justices Surya Kant and Hima Kohli sought responses of Uttarakhand and Delhi Police in ten days.
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for petitioner in the case, told the Bench that Dharam Sansad is going to organise another congregation at Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, and should be restrained from making hate speech there while the apex court is seized of the matter.
On Sibal's apprehension, the Bench allowed the petitioners to bring the case before the notice of the local authorities and against holding of Dharam Sansad and apprise them how it is against certain penal provisions.
During the hearing, Sibal argued that when the election process is on, unless preventive detention steps are taken against Dharam Sansad participants the country would slip on its ethos.
He said if no quick steps are taken, these Dharam Sansads will be held in Una, Dasna, Kurukshetra, these events vitiate the entire country's atmosphere.
Senior advocate Indira Jaising sought an intervention on behalf of Tushar Gandhi, great-grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, saying that the top court had passed directions against mob-violence in his application in 2019 and "had those directions been implemented, this Dharam Sansad would not have happened".
The petition was filed by former High Court judge and senior advocate Anjana Prakash and journalist Qurban Ali. The plea sought the arrest and trial of people who made hate speeches, inciting violence towards Muslims, at the Haridwar Dharm Sansad conclave.
On Monday, mentioning the matter before CJI Bench for early hearing, Sibal said that slogan of the country seems to be changed from 'Satyameva Jayate' to 'Shasatrameva Jayate'.
"We are living in very dangerous times where slogans in the country have changed from Satyamev Jayate to Shashtramev Jayate," Sibal had told the apex court during the mentioning of the case.
The hate speeches were allegedly delivered between December 17 and 19, 2021, in Haridwar by Yati Narsinghanand and in Delhi by 'Hindu Yuva Vahini'.
The plea said that the alleged hate speeches consisted of open calls for genocide of Muslims in order to achieve ethnic cleansing.
"It is pertinent to note that the said speeches are not mere hate speeches but amount to an open call for murder of an entire community. The said speeches thus, pose a grave threat not just to the unity and integrity of our country but also endanger the lives of millions of Muslim citizens," plea added.
It further said that it is relevant to note that no action has been taken by the Uttarakhand and Delhi Police in relation with the event held there despite the fact that open calls for genocide, that are available on the internet, were made therein.
The plea also highlighted about a video which had gone viral where a police officer was seen acknowledging his allegiance to the offenders.
"Not only the inaction of the Police allows delivery of hate speeches with impunity but also shows that the Police authorities are in fact hand in glove with the perpetrators of communal hate," it added.
