Rajasthan Court Acquits Dargah Cleric, 5 Others Accused Of Raising 'Sar Tan Se Juda' Slogan Against Nupur Sharma

The slogan was allegedly raised during a public protest (at the main gate of the Ajmer Dargah) following Sharma's alleged comments about the Prophet Muhammad, which had sparked widespread outrage. Following her alleged remarks, she was also suspended by the BJP.

However, Additional District and Session Judge Ritu Meena found insufficient evidence to substantiate the allegations against them today. A detailed judgment of the case is awaited.

#JustIN | Rajasthan Court ACQUITS a dargah cleric (Syed Gohar Husain Chisti) and five others who had allegedly raised the "Sar Tan Se Juda" slogan (in 2022) in a protest rally against Ex-BJP spokesperson #NupurSharma over her alleged statement on Prophet Mohammad.#AjmerCourt pic.twitter.com/qgtvDQJ8az

— Live Law (@LiveLawIndia) July 16, 2024

As per the allegations, the Ajmer Dargah cleric Gauhar Chisti, along with others, raised the slogan in question [gustakhi-e-nabi ki ek hi saza, sar tan se juda sar tan se juda (Beheading is the only punishment for those who insult Prophet Muhammad)] on June 17 2022 while organizing a rally to protest against the alleged statement made by suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma against Prophet Mohammad.

He was arrested on July 15 from Hyderabad and booked under Sections 506, 504, 188, 149, 143, 117, and 302/115 of the IPC. Before the Court, his primary stand was that since Sharma had hurt the community's religious sentiments, he had only organised a peaceful protest rally with due and lawful permission.

It was the state's case that the alleged video clips of the slogan in question were widely circulated online, which in effect led to the unfortunate incidents at Udaipur and Amravati, wherein the victims were beheaded on account of religious hatred promulgated by such slogans and therefore, provisions of Section 115 read with Section 302 were also attracted against the accused.