The Madhya Pradesh High Court has rejected the anticipatory bail plea of cartoonist Hemant Malviya, observing that his caricature of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) volunteer had clearly crossed the limits of permissible free speech and could provoke religious discord.
The controversial cartoon, which was posted on Malviya’s Facebook page, depicted a man in RSS attire bending over with his shorts pulled down, while the Prime Minister stood beside him with a stethoscope and an injection, prompting a complaint from an RSS member.
Malviya was booked in May following the complaint, which alleged that the cartoon insulted both Modi and the RSS in an undignified manner and hurt religious sentiments. The court noted that the cartoon appeared to be a deliberate and malicious attempt to outrage religious feelings and said it could be considered prejudicial to social harmony.
It held that Malviya’s action amounted to a misuse of the right to freedom of speech and expression under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution, and concluded that his custodial interrogation was necessary.
The judge also noted that Malviya had endorsed comments related to Lord Shiva on the same post, which made the caricature even more offensive. Citing the Supreme Court’s Arnesh Kumar guidelines that discourage arbitrary arrests, the court held that the benefit of these guidelines would not apply in this case, as Malviya had shown a tendency to commit similar offences in the past.
The state’s counsel submitted that Malviya’s work consistently featured such caricatures and argued that his repeated actions threatened social harmony, while Malviya’s lawyer defended the cartoon as satirical and limited to his social media account, referencing the work of noted cartoonist R.K. Laxman for comparison. However, the court dismissed the comparison, finding Malviya’s caricature significantly more provocative.