Comments Against PM Modi: SC Accepts Cong Leader Pawan Khera’s Request to Hear His Argument Against HC Order

On Monday, the Supreme Court decided to hear a case brought by Congressman Pawan Khera who was charged with uttering offensive comments against Prime Minister Narendra Modi but the Allahabad High Court refused to dismiss the case. Justices B R Gavai and Prashant Kumar Mishra’s panel requested comments on Khera’s argument contesting the high court’s ruling from August 17—including from the state of Uttar Pradesh. Notice, the bench commanded.

Khera’s representative, senior attorney Abhishek Singhvi, requested that the case’s proceedings be suspended to the bench. The temporary remedy sought in the petition was also given notice by the bench.

On August 17, the high court rejected Khera’s argument, stating that the petition submitted under section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) for the case’s acquittal cannot be reviewed based on the evidence gathered by the case’s investigating officer. It had noted that it would be proper if Khera brought all of his complaints before the jurisdictional court in Lucknow as the top court had instructed him to do so. On March 20, the Supreme Court combined three FIRs against Khera that had been filed in Assam and Uttar Pradesh for allegedly uttering offensive comments against Prime Minister Modi. The case was then sent to the Hazratganj police station in Lucknow, and Khera was granted a temporary bail order.

He had been granted bail in the case by the Lucknow court. Khera has apologized completely in front of the judge for the alleged insults.

On February 23, the Congress spokesman was deboarded from a flight that was intended to take him to Raipur, and he was then detained at the Delhi airport. The highest court did give him temporary release that day, nevertheless, and it was periodically renewed. The Assam Police detained him in relation to his alleged criticism of Prime Minister Modi during a press conference in Mumbai on February 17.