New Delhi, Mar 28: The Supreme Court on Wednesday dismissed an FIR against Congress Rajya Sabha MP Imran Pratapgarhi over an Instagram post featuring a poem titled “Ae khoon ke pyase baat suno.” The court ruled that no offence was made out, criticizing Gujarat Police for its overzealous action.
A bench comprising Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan stated that restrictions on speech must be “reasonable, not fanciful,” adding that Article 19(2) of the Constitution cannot overshadow the freedoms guaranteed under Article 19(1).
“Without freedom of expression, leading a dignified life as guaranteed under Article 21 is impossible,” the court said, emphasizing that differing views in a democracy should be countered with counter-speech rather than suppression.
The court highlighted the significance of literature, poetry, drama, films, satire, stand-up comedy, and art in making life more meaningful.
The ruling comes amid controversy surrounding stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra, who faced FIRs and venue vandalism following remarks about Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.
The FIR against Pratapgarhi was lodged on January 3 at Jamnagar police station by an advocate’s clerk, alleging that the poem in his Instagram post incited unrest and disturbed social harmony. The Gujarat High Court had earlier refused to quash the FIR, criticizing Pratapgarhi for not acting responsibly as a lawmaker.
Pratapgarhi claimed the poem was authored by renowned poets Faiz Ahmed Faiz or Habib Jalib. He presented AI-generated screenshots from ChatGPT to support his claim. However, the prosecution argued that his status as a parliamentarian required him to exercise greater caution on social media.
