NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court will deliver its verdict on Friday on an appeal filed by Congress Rajya Sabha MP Imran Pratapgarhi, seeking to quash an FIR registered against him by the Gujarat Police for posting a poem on social media.
A two-judge bench, comprising Justice Abhay S Oka and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan, had reserved its judgment on Pratapgarhi's plea on 3 March and will now pronounce its decision.
During an earlier hearing, the apex court observed that the police must understand the significance of the freedom of speech and expression "at least now" after 75 years of the Constitution.
"When it comes to the freedom of speech and expression, it has to be preserved," the court had remarked.
The FIR alleged that Pratapgarhi had posted a 46-second video clip of the poem on 29 December on his X handle, with the lyrics "Ae khoon ke pyase baat suno..." playing in the background.
However, the bench noted that the poem actually conveyed a message of non-violence and criticised the police for their lack of sensitivity in filing the FIR.
"This actually promotes non-violence. It has nothing to do with religion, this has nothing to do with any anti-national activity. Police have shown a lack of sensitivity," the bench had said, reprimanding the Gujarat Police.
The court further expressed concern over the diminishing respect for creativity, stating, "This is the problem—now nobody has any respect for creativity. If you read it plainly, it says that even if you suffer injustice, suffer it with love, even if people die, we will accept it."
The Supreme Court had earlier questioned the Gujarat Police’s decision to register an FIR, asserting that "it is ultimately a poem" and "not against any religion."
"It's ultimately a poem. It is not against any religion. This poem indirectly says even if somebody indulges in violence, we will not indulge in violence. That's the message which the poem gives. It is not against any particular community," the bench had observed.
On 21 January, the apex court granted interim relief to Pratapgarhi, who was accused of promoting communal disharmony by posting the video.
A Jamnagar resident had filed a complaint against the Congress MP, alleging that the poem was "provocative, detrimental to national integrity, and hurt religious sentiments."
Pratapgarhi initially approached the Gujarat High Court seeking to quash the FIR, arguing that the poem "spreads a message of love." However, the High Court refused to quash the case, stating that "there was a need for further investigation" and that the MP had "not cooperated with the investigation process."
Following this, Pratapgarhi moved the Supreme Court for relief.
The FIR, registered on 3 January by the Jamnagar police, booked Pratapgarhi under charges of promoting enmity between different groups based on religion, race, statements prejudicial to national integration, and abetting an offence involving a group of more than ten people. Pratapgarhi has vehemently denied these allegations.
