HC denies bail to comedian Munawar Faruqui, talks about fundamental duties

The Madhya Pradesh High Court onThursday refused bail to comedian Munawar Faruqui who isaccused of passing ''indecent'' remarks about Hindu deitiesduring a show, and noted that to ''promote harmony'' is one ofthe constitutional duties.

Liberty of a person has to be ''balanced'' with hisduties towards other citizens, Justice Rohit Arya of theIndore bench of the high court said, citing a Supreme Courtruling.

The court also turned down the bail plea of NalinYadav, another accused in the case.

Faruqui and four others were arrested on January 1following a complaint by a BJP MLA's son that objectionableremarks about Hindu deities and Union Home Minister Amit Shahwere passed during a comedy show at a cafe in Indore on NewYear's day. One more person was arrested subsequently.

Faruqui and Yadav are in judicial remand and lodged inIndore Central Jail. A magistrate's court and a sessions courtrejected their bail pleas, following which they moved the highcourt.

In its order, the high court said it would not commenton merits of the case, but based on the material seized, thewitnesses' statements and considering the fact that probe wasgoing on, no case is made out for grant of bail.

''The evidence/material collected so far suggests thatin an organized public show under the garb of stand-up comedyat a public place on commercial lines, prima facie,scurrilous, disparaging utterances, outraging religiousfeelings of a class of citizens of India with deliberateintent, were made by the applicant,'' it said.

''Liberty of an individual has to be balanced with hisduties and obligations towards his fellow citizens,'' the ordersaid, citing a past Supreme Court judgment.

The court noted defence lawyers' argument that Faruquihad come to Indore on an invitation by organizers, and didnot say anything that has been alleged.

However, in the light of the statements of thecomplainant and witnesses and video footage of the show,''at this stage it is difficult to countenance to thesubmissions of the learned counsel for the applicant ascomplacency of the applicant cannot be ruled out'', it said.

''It is not a case of no evidence. More so, theinvestigation is in progress,'' the court added.

There was a possibility that ''more incriminatingmaterial'' would be collected, and further, a similar case hasbeen registered against Faruqui in Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh,the high court noted.

''That apart, there is also specific assertion by thecounsel for the complainant that the applicant, along withother co-accused persons, (were) allegedly making outragingfilthy jokes in social media deliberately against Hindu Gods,Lord Shriram and Goddess Seeta, hurting religious sentimentsof Hindus for the last 18 months, despite protest on varioussocial media platforms. There is nothing on record to thecontrary,'' it said.

''Our country is a beautiful country and sets anexample of coexistence amid diversities, be it religion,language, culture, geographical locations etc, to the world atlarge,'' the high court said.

''It is the constitutional duty of every citizen of thecountry and also of the states to promote harmony and thespirit of common brotherhood amongst all the people of Indiairrespective of religious, linguistic, regional or sectionaldiversities and to value and preserve the rich heritage of ourcomposite culture (Article 15A (e) and (f) of the Constitutionof India),'' it said.

The government must ensure that ''ecosystem andsustenance of coexistence is not polluted by negative forces'',it said.

The high court did not comment on the part of the FIRwhere it is alleged that indecent jokes were also crackedabout Union minister Shah.

As per the First Information Report, the comedy showwas held at a cafe in 56 Dukan area of Indore on January 1.

Eklavya Singh Gaud, son of local BJP MLA Malini Laxman SinghGaud, had filed a complaint against Faruqui and others.

Gaud said he and his associates had gone to watchthe show where indecent jokes were made about Hindu gods andgoddesses and Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

He forced the organizers to stop the show, he said.

Faruqui and others were arrested under IPC section295-A (outraging religious feelings).

They were also accused of holding the show amidCOVID-19 pandemic without permission and booked under section269 (unlawful or negligent act likely to spread the infectionof any disease dangerous to life) and other relevantprovisions.

Faruqui's lawyer Anshuman Shrivastava said they willmove the Supreme Court against the high court's order.

The show was stopped by complainant Eklavya Singh Gaudwhen Faruqui had not even started his performance, and the FIRwas based on controversies surrounding his earlier shows, thelawyer claimed.

But Indore's Inspector General Harinarayan ChariMishra asserted that the police case was based on theJanuary 1 program.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)