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The High Court of Allahabad has granted interim protection to a man who had called Prime Minister Narendra Modi a “virus” for the country which needed an “urgent antidote”. The post was made on social media. The order was passed by a division bench of Justices Anjani Kumar Mishra and Nand Prabha Shukla on June 21, 2024.
The Case
A First Information Report was filed against the man for the use of insulting and derogatory language by the Prime Minister. The First Information Report alleged that the comments made by the man constituted under Section 504 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 66 of the Information Technology Act, 2008. The man proceeded to file a petition in the Allahabad High Court seeking quashing of this FIR.
What the Petitioner’s Counsel Said
Advocate Aishwarya Pratap Singh, representing the petitioner said that no offence is made out under either Section 504 or Section 66 of the IPC or the Information Technology Act. The comment made by the petitioner was merely political and in no way fulfilled the requirements for the filing of FIR under these two sections. The comments made on social media were not indecent or derogatory.
What the Respondent’s Counsel Said
The counsel for the state of Uttar Pradesh and the Additional Advocate General Manish Goel argued that by filing a petition for quashing the FIR the petitioner has admitted to making the comments. It was submitted that this alone led to the disclosure of a cognizable offence and hence the petition merited a dismissal.
What did the court say?
The court passed an order directing that the petitioner may not be arrested consequently to the aforementioned FIR till the next listing of the case. Further, the court remarked that the comment prima facie seemed not to attract the provisions of the two sections under which the FIR was filed. Thus, the petitioner was granted protection from arrest until the case is heard next.
“Till the next date of listing, the petitioner may not be arrested consequently to the FIR filed April 1, 2024, which gave rise to Case Crime No.0082 of 2022, under Section 504 IPC and Section 66 of the Information Technology (Amendment) Act, 2008, Police Station- Kareli, District- Nagar (Commissionerate Prayagraj). This protection will be made available either till submission of a police report under Section 173(2) CrPC or till the next listing, whichever falls earlier,” the Allahabad High Court said in its order.
What is Section 504 of the Indian Penal Code?
Section 504 of the Indian Penal Code prescribes a fine or imprisonment for 2 years or both for a person who makes derogatory or insulting comments that are likely to cause the person insulted to commit any offence or break the public peace. It seeks to discourage provocative comments that might lead to disturbance of public peace.
What is Section 66 of the Information Technology (Amendment) Act?
This section makes it punishable to send any offensive messages through communication services which include social media sites such as Twitter, Facebook, etc. Any information with a “grossly offensive” or “menacing” character that is shared electronically is covered under this section. Additionally, false information that will likely cause annoyance, inconvenience, danger, insult, injury, criminal intimidation, enmity, hatred, or ill will is also made punishable. A person found guilty under this section may be punished by a fine and imprisonment for a period of up to three years.
