'Why So Touchy?' : Supreme Court Stays Criminal Proceedings Against SP Leader Swami Prasad Maurya For Remarks About Ramcharitmanas

The Supreme Court on Thursday (Friday 25) issued notice in Samajwadi Party leader Swami Prasad Maurya's plea for quashing of criminal proceedings over his alleged remark about Tulsidas' Ramcharitmanas.

The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court had earlier dismissed Maurya's plea to quash legal proceedings in a Pratapgarh district court related to the controversial remarks about the epic poem based on Ramayanan. Maurya, however, insisted that the case is politically motivated. In a significant development, a bench of Justices BR Gavai and Sandeep Mehta not only issued notice in his petition but also stayed the ongoing criminal proceedings against him.

During the hearing today, Justice BR Gavai, presiding over the case, questioned the state government's stance, asking, "Why do you have to be so touchy?" His colleague, Justice Sandeep Mehta, echoed the sentiment, emphasising that the matter revolved around interpretation. The judge said, "It's a matter of intepretation. Plain and simple. How is it an offence?"

The government law officer attempted to persuade the bench against staying the criminal proceedings against the SP leader. "Copies are being burnt..."

"He cannot be held responsible for that. It's a line of thought," Justice Mehta countered. Ultimately, the bench pronounced -

"Issue notice returnable in four weeks. Mr Sharan Dev Singh Thakur, learned additional advocate general for the State of Uttar Pradesh accepts notice. Stay on proceedings."

Background

The legal battle began when Maurya faced charges for allegedly making remarks against Tulsidas' Ramcharitmanas, sparking controversy and leading to a First Information Report (FIR) against him and other Samajwadi Party members. The allegations included advocating for a ban on specific verses of the holy text, deeming them insulting to a significant portion of society. The FIR detailed a climate of public anger and unease, with reports of leaders endorsing the burning of Ramcharitmanas' copies and using derogatory language against its devotees.

The Allahabad High Court, upon reviewing the chargesheet and evidence, found sufficient grounds for a prima facie case against Maurya. The court emphasised the need for public representatives to avoid actions that could disrupt communal harmony. Rejecting Maurya's plea, the court stated that, prima facie, he appeared to have incited people to incite rebellion, resulting in damage and insult to Ramcharitmanas. Observing that healthy criticism did not include words that would prompt incite people to violence, a bench of Justice Subhash Vidyarthi noted, "It prima facie appears that due to the statement, some other leaders across India unanimously agreed to burn copies of Shri Ramcharitmanas and they used foul language against Hindu society, due to which, unrest was created in the public mind and a feeling of hostility and animosity arose among various sections of the Hindu religion."

In response to the dismissal of his plea, Maurya turned to the Supreme Court for relief. 

Case Details

Swami Prasad Maurya v. State of Uttar Pradesh & Anr. | Diary No. 50823 of 2023

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