Madras High Court
Nupur J.Sharma vs The State Represented By on 4 March, 2025
Author: G.K.Ilanthiraiyan
Bench: G.K.Ilanthiraiyan
Crl.OP.No.11366 of 2023
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT MADRAS
DATED : 04.03.2025
CORAM:
THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE G.K.ILANTHIRAIYAN
Crl.O.P.No.11366 of 2023
and
Crl.MP.No.7131 of 2023
1.Nupur J.Sharma
2. Rahul Roushan ... Petitioners
Vs.
1. The State Represented by
The Inspector of Police,
Conventional Crimes,
Central Crime Branch (CCB),
O/o.The Commissioner of Police,
Avadi, Chennai-600 054.
2. Surya Prakash ... Respondents.
PRAYER: Criminal Original Petition is filed under Section 482 of
the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 to call for the records
culminating in the impugned FIR/Cr.No.11 of 2023 dated
10.03.2023, now pending on the file of the Central Crime Branch,
Avadi Commissionerate and quash the same as against the petitioners.
For Petitioners : Mr.S.Dinu Prashanth
for Mr.D.Ganesh Raj
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Crl.OP.No.11366 of 2023
For Respondents : Mr.K.M.D.Muhilan
Government Advocate (Crl.Side)
for R1
ORDER
This petition has been filed to quash the F.I.R. in Crime No.11 of 2023 registered by the first respondent police for offences under Sections 153A, 505(1)b and 505(2) of IPC, as against the petitioners.
2. The case of the prosecution is that initially on the complaint lodged by the second respondent/defacto complainant, the Inspector of Police, Thiruninravur Police Station, Avadi has registered an FIR in Cr.No.43/2023 for the offences punishable under Sections 153A,505(1)(b), 502(2) of IPC. Later, the said FIR was transferred to the file of the first respondent police in Cr.No.11 of 2023 on 10.03.2023 for further investigation.
3. Alleging that the second respondent had received an information with regard to spreading rumor related to migrant laborers from the social media platform of Twitter on 05.03.2023, wherein spreading false news has created a sense of fear among the 2/13 https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis ( Uploaded on: 18/03/2025 02:25:06 pm ) Crl.OP.No.11366 of 2023 public and the workers who came to Tamilnadu for work from Bihar and other States. There is risk of conflict between the local people and people from Bihar. He had also seen the comments that according to Arman, dead bodies of migrant laborers have been returned to jamui, Nawada and Lakshirai Districts in Bihar from Tamilnadu. Biharis are fleeing Tamilnadu on one pretext or the other, that is why it has become difficult to even get train tickets Arman went on to say that a friend of his was attacked and four of his fingers were severed in front of him because he spoke Hindi. He further alleged that 12 workers were hung to death in one room, raising the total number Hindi speaking workers murdered in the State to 15. The other two laborers from Bihar who worked in Tamilnadu and returned home two days ago, claimed the situation in the State is exceedingly dangerous, with Bihari migrant laborers being targeted and cruelly murdered. Further accusing the Biharis of snatching their employment and stabbing them where ever they saw them and their employers and local officials are of no help. It will make fear amongst the migrant laborers.
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4. When none of the events mentioned in the above news took place in Tamilnadu and the people are very calm such false news has been spread. Apart from this Opindia.com website has published a report quoting that in a Hindi daily one Dainik Baskar has published a report stating that several migrant laborers originally from Jamuai District in Bihar working in Tamilnadu have confirmed these attacks. Further alleged that 15 people have lost their lives in the '' Taliban'' style attacks being carried out against the Hindi speaking migrant laborers in the State of Tamilnadu. As a result, terror has gripped these migrant laborers who are now fleeing the State in large numbers. This false news has been widely circulated in various social media throughout India. This will cause nuisance to the public tranquility.
5. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioners as well as the learned Government Advocate(Crl.Side) appearing for the respondent police and perused the materials available on record.
6. The petitioners are arrayed as A1 and A2. On 02.03.2023, Dainik Bhaskar in a prominent Hindi news daily published an 4/13 https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis ( Uploaded on: 18/03/2025 02:25:06 pm ) Crl.OP.No.11366 of 2023 exclusive news report detailing the Talibani style punishment which purportedly was being inflicted on Biharis for speaking in Hindi.
7. In the said report, Dainik Bhaskar claimed that their correspondent had spoken to one migrant worker-Arman, native of Jamui in Bihar, who at the relevant time was stuck in Coimbatore, Tamilnadu. While he narrated his ordeal interalia, claimed that 12 people from Bihar have hanged to death. On the same date i.e., 02.03.2023, a similar news report about violence being inflicted upon various migrant workers of Bihar, in various parts of Tamilnadu was also published in another prominent Hindu Newspaper called '' Hindustan''. Thereafter, the Hon'ble Chief Minister of Bihar issued a statement on his official Twitter Account, which translates as under:
'' I have learned through newspapers that Bihari workers in Tamil Nadu are being attacked. I have directed the Chief Secretary and the Director General of Police to speak to officers of Tamilnadu Government and to ensure safety of workers from Bihar''.
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8. After few hours, the Director General of Police, Tamilnadu had issued a statement; that refuting allegations that Bihari migrant workers were being attacked in Tamilnadu and the videos circulating on social media regarding laborers from Bihar being killed were fake.
Thereafter, the petitioners had published a news report in Opindia.com on the public controversy that had erupted consequent to the Dainik Bhaskar's exclusive report on the violence against the Bihari migrants narrating every aspect/ dimension of the controversy including the concern expressed by the Hon'ble Chief Minister of Tamilnadu and also the clarification issued by the Director General of Police, Tamilnadu.
9. Infact after clarification issued by the Director General of Police, Tamilnadu, the Dainik Bhaskar carried a further story on 05.03.2023 with the caption that '' Exodus of Biharis from Tamilnadu; on DGP's claim workers say if nothing happened, then why are we coming back''.
10. After clarification issued by the Director General of Police, 6/13 https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis ( Uploaded on: 18/03/2025 02:25:06 pm ) Crl.OP.No.11366 of 2023 Tamilnadu, the petitioners had amended their article in Opindia.com on 05.03.2023 which reads as follows:
'' the claims about murders and killing as well as the fingers of the Hindi-speaking migrant laborers being chopped and the laborers being locked in a room and hanged, which were reported by Dainik Bhaskar were retracted after the incident caused nationwide controversy. Since their reports were based on Dainik Bhaskar's report and were reproduced here crediting them explicitly, we have removed those claims as well because Bhaskar doesn't seem to be standing by it anymore''.
11. Even then it is resulted in registration of FIR as against the petitioners on the complaint lodged by the second respondent. Infact, the first respondent had sent notices under Section 41A of Cr.P.C, summoning the petitioners to appear for enquiry to be held on 03.04.2023. The said notices were received together on the same date by the petitioners only on 31.03.2023, for which the petitioners had sent a letter dated 01.04.2023 to the first respondent stating that they are ready to render fullest co-operation and requested to interrogate 7/13 https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis ( Uploaded on: 18/03/2025 02:25:06 pm ) Crl.OP.No.11366 of 2023 through video conferencing. However, the petitioners were served notices under Section 41A of Cr.P.C and directed to physically appear before the first respondent on 21.04.2023. The registration of an FIR has the effect of choking the right of free speech.
12. Freedom of Speech as enshrined under Article 19(1)(a), and the right to personal liberty as enshrined under Article 21 of the Constitution of India. Therefore, admittedly the said news was originally published by Dainik Bhaskar and other publishers. Therefore, the petitioners are not originator of the said news. Infact on perusal of the news published by them also revealed that they had specifically mentioned about the incident which was published by Dainik Bharskar and after the statement of Director General of Police, Tamilnadu, they also published another news saying that earlier news is fake one. Therefore, the registration of the FIR is nothing but abuse of Penal Provision against an act of bonafide and fair publication of a news pertaining to a public controversy, is in teeth of Freedom of Speech guaranteed under Article 19(1)(a) , more so when a bare perusal of the publication in question makes it amply clear that none 8/13 https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis ( Uploaded on: 18/03/2025 02:25:06 pm ) Crl.OP.No.11366 of 2023 of ingredients of the offences as alleged by the prosecution are made out.
13. In so far as offences punishable under Section 153 A of IPC is concerned there are no ingredients to attract the said offence. None of the statements contained in the report were made or directed at promoting enmity or hatred or ill-will between the groups or prejudicial to the maintenance of harmony or which may have affected public tranquility, much less between any religious groups, nor did the petitioners do anything prejudicial to maintenance of harmony. On perusal of the news item published by the petitioners, there is nothing to show that that the petitioners had published the report with the intention to cause disorder or incite people to violence which is sine qua non for attracting the provision of Section 153A of IPC.
14. The offence under Sections 501(1) and (2) of IPC, are not attracted in the present case as the petitioners have neither insulted, much less intentionally, nor provoked any person to break public 9/13 https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis ( Uploaded on: 18/03/2025 02:25:06 pm ) Crl.OP.No.11366 of 2023 peace or commit any other offence. Threfore, the provocation or intentional insult must be of such a degree that should provoke a person to break the public peace to commit any other offence or very much required to attract Section 505(5) IPC.
15. Further the Honble Supreme Court of India held in the case reported in 199 6 SCC 150 in the case of Union of India Vs. Motion Pictures Association held that '' free speech is the foundation of democratic society and free exchange of ideas, dissemination of information without restraints dissemination of knowledge, airing of differing view points, debating and forming one's own views and expressing them, are the basic indicia of a free society. The freedom alone makes it possible for people to formulate their own views and opinions on a property basis and to exercise their social, economic and political rights in a free society in an informed manner and therefore, any restraints on this right, therefore have been jealously watched by the Court''.
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16. Further, the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India in W.P (Criminal)No.155 of 2020 dated 09.12.2021 held that the “State force should never be used to either browbeat a political opinion or the journalists suffer the consequences of what is already in public domain. We hasten to add that this does not take away the responsibility of the journalist in how they report the matters more so in a '' twitter age” Therefore, the news which is allegedly published by the petitioners were already in public domain.
17. The above case is squarely applicable to the case on hand. Thus it is clear that curtailed freedom of speech and expression of the petitioners is arbitrarily and extra constitutional and thus fails the test of reasonableness. In view of the above, this Court finds that no offence is made out as against the petitioners.
18. In view of the above, no offence is made out as against the petitioners. Therefore, the FIR registered in Cr.No.11 of 2023 cannot be sustained and it is liable to be quashed. Accordingly, it is hereby 11/13 https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis ( Uploaded on: 18/03/2025 02:25:06 pm ) Crl.OP.No.11366 of 2023 quashed.
19. In the result, this Criminal Original petition is allowed. Consequently, connected miscellaneous petition is closed.
04.03.2025 Vv To
1. The Inspector of Police, Conventional Crimes, Central Crime Branch (CCB), O/o.The Commissioner of Police, Avadi, Chennai-600 054.
2. The Public Prosecutor, Madras High Court, Chennai.
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