SC grants stand-up comic Munawar Faruqui bail, stays UP arrest warrant
NEW The Supreme Court on Friday took less than a minute to order bail for stand-up comedian Munawar Faruqui, who had been behind bars for 35 days on charges of hurting religious sentiments during a public show staged in Indore on January 1.
“The petitioner (Faruqui) is released on ad-interim bail on conditions to the satisfaction of the trial court,” said a bench of justices Rohinton F Nariman and BR Gavai.
It seemed prima facie in agreement with advocate Saurabh Kirpal, who appeared for Faruqui, that Indore Police did not follow the procedure contemplated by the top court in its 2014 judgment in Arnesh Kumar’s case. The judgment required the police to conduct a preliminary probe before making arrest where offences were punishable with imprisonment for a term less than seven years.
Staying the Madhya Pradesh high court judgment that had declined bail to Faruqui, the court issued notices to the state
police as well as to the complainant in the case, Hindu Rakshak Sangathan convener Eklavya Singh Gaud, who is also a son of a Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP) legislator Malini Singh Gaud.
The bench also restrained the Uttar Pradesh Police from arresting Faruqui in a separate case registered against him at Prayagraj for allegedly offending religious feelings through his jokes and comedy.
Commenting on the high court’s order, senior advocate Vivek Tankha, who represented Faruqui in the high court, said: “Citizens salute the apex court for speedy justice. This case was followed with immense concern internationally.”
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday granted interim bail to comedian Munawar Faruqui, who is accused of hurting religious sentiments by allegedly passing objectionably remarks about Hindu deities during a show.
The top court relief came following a petition by the comic, challenging the rejection of his bail by Madhya Pradesh High Court.
Besides this, a bench of Justice RF Nariman and Justice BR Gavai also stayed the production warrant in a case against him in Uttar Pradesh.
In his petition, Faruqui had alleged that the police did not follow the procedure for arrest as laid down by the top court in its 2014 decision in Arnesh Kumar vs the State of Bihar. As per this decision, the arrest should be preceded by initial investigations by the police officer to assess the genuineness of the complaint.
The 2014 decision also said that proper facts and reasons should be presented before a magistrate by the officer within 24 hours of the arrest.
The magistrate, in turn, is to be satisfied that the condition precedent for arrest under Section 41 Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) has been satisfied and it is only thereafter that he will authorise the detention of an accused.
Faruqui and four others were arrested on January 1 following a complaint by the son of a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator, alleging he had passed objectionable remarks about Hindu deities and Union home minister Amit Shah during a comedy show at a cafe in Indore on New Year’s Day.
One more person was arrested after that.
The high court, in its order passed on January 28, had refused to grant him bail noting that to “promote harmony” is one of the constitutional duties.
It had also turned down the bail plea of another accused in the case.
“The evidence/material collected so far suggests that in an organized public show under the garb of stand-up comedy at a public place on commercial lines, prima facie, scurrilous, disparaging utterances, outraging religious feelings of a class of citizens of India with deliberate intent, were made by the applicant,” the court had said.
There was a possibility that “more incriminating material” would be collected, and further, a similar case has been registered against Faruqui in Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh, the high court had noted.
“That apart, there is also specific assertion by the counsel for the complainant that the applicant, along with other co-accused persons, (were) allegedly making outraging filthy jokes in social media deliberately against Hindu Gods, Lord Shriram and Goddess Seeta, hurting religious sentiments of Hindus for the last 18 months, despite protest on various social media platforms. There is nothing on record to the contrary,” the court said.