HC stays arrest of ‘Mirzapur’ producers
PRAYAGRAJ: The Allahabad high court on Friday stayed the arrest of Mirzapur web series producers Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani in pursuance of the FIR (First Information Report) registered against them at Kotwali Dehat police station in Mirzapur district of Uttar Pradesh.
While staying the arrest, the court directed that the petitioners shall offer full cooperation in the investigation.
Hearing a writ petition filed by Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani, a division bench comprising Justice Manoj Kumar Gupta and Justice Subhash Chand also issued notice to the state government and the complainant in the matter, seeking their respective replies (counteraffidavits).
The court directed to list this case in the first week of March 2021. The FIR was registered against the petitioners under Section 295-A (Deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs) and other sections of the Indian Penal Code and 67-A of the Information Technology Act.
The main allegation in the FIR was that the petitioners, who are stated to be running a production company and are producers of the web series Mirzapur, are guilty of offences under the above sections by improper and indecent portrayal of the town of Mirzapur. It had hurt the religious, social and regional sentiments of the first informant and was instrumental in advancing ill feelings and animosity, it was alleged in the FIR.
It was further alleged that the web series of such kind must have been produced by a big production house after due deliberations. It had impacted the society so much that his (the first informant or complainant’s) friends had started calling him “Kaaleen Bhaiya”, one of the main characters in the said web series.
The petitioners were represented by senior advocates GS Chaturvedi and Manish Tiwari and were assisted by advocate Syed Imran Ibrahim.
The counsel for petitioners argued that even if all the allegations in the FIR were taken to be correct, no offence was made out against the petitioners.
There was no allegation that the web series was produced with any deliberate or malicious intention of outraging the religious and social feelings of the citizens of India or to insult the religious and social feelings of the people of any particular class.
The web series was a work of fiction and that every act, which tantamount to insult or attempts to insult the religious feelings of any class of citizens, would not come within the purview of Section 295-A of IPC unless the said act was perpetrated with the deliberate and malicious intention of outraging the religious feelings of that class of citizens, the counsel for the petitioners argued.
On the other hand, the state counsel submitted that there was a specific allegation that the web series had hurt the social and religious feelings of the first informant. He also urged that the web series promoted illicit relationships and incited religious disharmony.