Posts about Pahalgam attack: UP court dismisses case against singer Neha Singh Rathore
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Lucknow: A court in Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday dismissed the case filed against Bhojpuri singer Neha Singh Rathore over her social media posts, Live Law reported.
The complainant, Shivendra Singh, accused Rathore of falsely linking PM Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah to the Pahalgam attack as part of creating public unrest and targeting electoral advantage.
However, additional civil judge (senior division) and Ayodhya additional chief judicial magistrate, Ekta Singh, termed the case as not maintainable while saying that the complainant, Shivendra Singh, had no locus standi to file the case.
The case against the singer was filed under a section in Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita that allows magistrates to take cognisance of offences.
The complainant claimed that Rathore’s ‘false and illegal’ remarks, alongside causing nationwide unrest, led the country to civil war and thus Rathore’s acts amounted to sedition, constituting a cognizable offence.
The judge on Tuesday referred to Section 222(2) of Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita related to prosecution for defamation.
As per this section, a sessions court could directly take cognizance of a written complaint that a public prosecutor files in the event of defamation is committed against President, Vice-President, a Union or state minister.
The court pointed out that a public prosecutor under sub-section (2) cannot make any complaint, except with a prior sanction from the Centre or a state government.
The court made it clear that Shivendra Singh could not file current case without obtaining the appropriate sanction.
As for the complaint Rathore had committed acts falling under Chapter VII of BNS, dealing with offences against the state, the court made it clear that here too complainant required prior sanction from the Centre or a state government.
The judge said that as the complainant failed to submit any document showcasing that the required sanction was obtained, he did not have the right to file the case.
