The Supreme Court today ordered the Uttarakhand government to provide a status report on the hate speech case against the Haridwar Dharam Sansad (religious assembly). The state government informed the court that four First Information Reports (FIRs) had been submitted in the matter, three of which had charge sheets attached.
The Supreme Court has issued a notice to the Himachal Pradesh government against the upcoming Dharam Sansad event, which is set to take place in the state on Sunday. The petitioner was also given permission to approach the local Collector with a request to cancel the event.
On April 22, the case will be heard again.
The petitioner, represented by senior counsel Kapil Sibal, requested that the event scheduled for Sunday in Himachal Pradesh be cancelled.
"I'm not even sure I can read what's said at these types of gatherings. I'm afraid I won't be able to read them in public "he stated
The court was considering a petition filed by Justice Anjana Prakash, a former judge of the Patna High Court, and journalist Qurban Ali.
Hate speeches, consisting of open appeals for genocide of Muslims in order to achieve ethnic cleansing, were delivered between December 17 and 19, 2021, at two distinct rallies organised in Delhi (by the Hindu Yuva Vahini) and Haridwar (by Yati Narsinghanand), according to the petition.
Hindu religious leaders made blatant appeals for genocide and the use of weapons against Muslims during the Dharma Sansad in Haridwar, Uttarakhand. They were shown in a video joking with a police officer who they claimed would be "on our side" a few days later.
The Supreme Court had asked the Uttarakhand government, the Central government, and the Delhi Police to respond to a petition on the "Dharma Sansad," or religious assembly hate speech, on January 12.