NEW DELHI: A special three-judge bench of the SC headed by Justice Uday Umesh Lalit will hear on Sunday a petition filed by senior journalist Vinod Dua seeking interim protection from arrest in connection with various FIRs registered against him in states alleging that he had incited communal violence in the country.
The Delhi HC had recently stayed the investigation against Vinod Dua in an FIR which alleges him of spreading misinformation and causing communal enmity through his YouTube show.
BJP leader Ajay Shyam had complained that Dua made bizarre allegations on his YouTube show on March 30. According to his complaint, Dua said PM Modi used deaths and terror attacks to garner votes.
Dua has been charged under sections 124A (sedition), 268 (public nuisance), 501 (printing matter known to be defamatory) and 505 (statements conducive to public mischief) on the basis of a complaint last month by BJP’s Mahasu unit president Ajay Shyam.
The Delhi High Court had earlier stayed an investigation into a case against Dua in connection with his show on YouTube.
The police in Shimla had summoned him for questioning over a sedition complaint by a local BJP leader.
Like the complaint lodged in the national capital, the FIR registered against the senior journalist in Shimla is also over his YouTube show on communal riots in Delhi earlier this year.
According to the complaint, he accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of using "deaths and terror attacks" to get votes.
On Thursday, Dua was sent a notice asking him to appear before the police in Shimla.
Himachal Pradesh police personnel arrived at his Delhi home on Friday morning to serve the notice.
In his reply to the notice, Dua said he cannot visit Kumarsain police station because of his health, age and the COVID-19 protocol for travel and quarantine.
BJP leader Ajay Shyam had complained that Dua made bizarre allegations on his 15-minute YouTube show on March 30.
The BJP leader alleged that Dua had instigated violence against the government and the prime minister by spreading false and malicious news.
On Wednesday, the Delhi High Court had stayed till June 23 an investigation into a similar case filed by a BJP spokesperson, Naveen Kumar.
The court had said there was an unexplained delay of nearly three months in filing the complaint.
(With PTI Inputs)