The Supreme Court on Thursday (December 18) refused to hear the petition of Gurudutt Shetty Karkala, a resident of Bengaluru, Karnataka and who calls himself a BJP worker. Shetty had sought quashing of the FIR lodged by Gujarat Police against Prime Minister Narendra Modi for alleged derogatory comments on social media. The court not only refused to quash the FIR but also refused to grant interim relief of one week to apply for bail.
This matter has come to light at a time when Gurudutt Shetty calls himself a BJP worker, but he is considered a supporter of senior party leader Subramanian Swamy and keeps criticizing Prime Minister Modi and the Modi government and making sarcastic comments on social media.
A bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant, also comprising Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Justice Vipul Pancholi, dismissed the petition, saying the petitioner had brazenly misused the freedom of expression. The court also noted that no remorse or regret has been shown on the part of the petitioner.
During the hearing, the Chief Justice said, “You have not attached that post with the petition, because you have no remorse. You have no regrets for what you have done. You do not have a single good word for the people you are abusing.”
Guru Dutt Shetty is accused of satirizing Jawaharlal Nehru on social media platform (Jawaharlal Nehru Satire) Had re-posted a post made by a parody account named, in which objectionable and defamatory language was used against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Shetty claims that he simply re-tweeted the post with a question mark and that he is not its original author.
The account from which this post was made is a blue ticked account called @The_Nehru, which has been blocked in India. This account has been regularly making sarcastic and derogatory comments against the Modi government.
Gujarat Police has registered an FIR in this case under sections 336(4) and 79 of the Indian Justice Code (BNS), which are bailable sections. It is alleged that this post was made with the intention of tarnishing the image of the Prime Minister. Shetty also alleged that on November 10, Ahmedabad police reached his Bengaluru home without a warrant, stopped him for a while and served a notice under Section 35 of the Indian Civil Code (BNSS).
The petitioner’s counsel had sought interim relief of 5-7 days from the court so that he could apply for bail in the Gujarat High Court. However, the Supreme Court rejected this and clearly said, “There is no question of giving security.” However, the court also made it clear that Gurudutt Shetty has complete freedom to pursue legal remedies in the concerned High Court.
Also read:
Putin gives stern warning to European countries on use of Russian assets
Pak army is forcibly kidnapping women in Balochistan
5 years old, group of dolphins seen on Worli Sea face of Mumbai, video goes viral
India-Oman Free Trade Agreement to be implemented in next three months: Piyush Goyal
Comments are closed.