Telangana High Court Sets Aside BJP MLA Raja Singh's Preventive Detention, Restrains Him From Posting Offensive Content On Social Media

The Telangana High Court on Wednesday ordered suspended BJP MLA Raja Singh's release from the preventive detention.

The government had ordered his preventive detention soon after he was released on bail in August in a criminal case accusing him of making derogatory remarks against the Prophet Mohammad in a video posted on the social media.

Setting aside the detention order, the division bench of Justice A. Abhishek Reddy and Justice Juvvadi Sridevi restrained Singh from participating or holding any celebratory rallies or meeting after his release.  

"The detenu shall not give any interviews to any kind of media houses including the print media. In future, the detenu shall not make any provocative speeches against any religion or post any derogatory or offensive posts on any social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp, Youtube, etc," said the court. 

A detailed judgment is awaited.

The advance order was passed on a petition filed by Singh's wife, praying for the issuance of a writ of habeas corpus directing the authorities to set the detained MLA free.

She had prayed for quashing of the order of Preventive Detention which was approved by the Telangana Government in August this year. It was argued that the preventive detention order was illegal, arbitrary, contrary to law and in violation of Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution of India besides the guidelines as contemplated in the Preventive Detention Act.

Setting aside the orders, the court clarified that the conditions imposed by it on Singh are in addition to the conditions already imposed by the Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate in the FIR pending against him.