The Bombay High Court on Monday said that the Maharashtra government should “save its grace” by voluntarily deciding not to oppose the release of a student who was arrested for allegedly posting provocative tweets about Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar, Live Law reported.
A bench of Justices SS Shinde and MN Jadhav was hearing a petition filed by the student Nikhil Bhamre.
In May, Bhamre was arrested by Dindori Police in Nashik and charged under Indian Penal Code Sections 153 (A) (promoting enmity between different groups), 500 (defamation), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace), 506 (criminal intimidation).
In a tweet last month, he had written that the “time has come for Baramati’s Gandhi…to create Nathuram Godse of Baramati”, The Indian Express reported. Pune district’s Baramati is Pawar’s home turf. The pharmacy student, however, had not mentioned the name of any politician.
Bhamre moved the High Court, challenging the cases lodged against him for the tweets and sought his immediate release.
On Monday, the bench, without mentioning Pawar’s name, said that even the veteran politician would not like if a student was kept in jail for over a month, Live Law reported.
“If you start taking action like this, then you [will] end up damaging the name of the person who has received the second highest civilian award [Padma Vibhushan],” the judges said. “[It is] unheard that some student is kept in custody like this. Even the towering personality will not like that such a student be kept in jail.”
The court observed that the social media posts of Bhamre did not even mention the Nationalist Congress Party supremo’s name.
“There are hundreds and thousands of tweets posted everyday,” Justice Shinde said. “Will you take cognisance of each and every tweet? We do not want FIRs like these. Nobody is named. And you [state] keep someone in prison for a month. How is this a basis of everything?”
The court then directed the prosecutor to consult with the Maharashtra Home Department and issue a no-objection letter for Bhamre’s release from the jail.
The bench posted the matter for hearing on June 16.
In a similar case last month, Marathi actor Ketaki Chitale was arrested by the Thane Police for sharing a derogatory social media post allegedly targeting Pawar.
The 29-year-old actor had shared a poem about Pawar on Facebook and attributed it to an advocate named Nitin Bhave. The poem had mentioned the Nationalist Congress Party leader’s last name and referred to a person above 80 years of age.
The social media post had said that “hell is waiting” for Pawar and made references to his illness and appearance. The poem added that Pawar harbours hatred for Brahmins.
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