Madurai, Jan 21 The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court has quashed an FIR registered against BJP leader Amit Malviya for allegedly distorting the comments made by Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin on 'Sanatana Dharma'.
Justice S Srimathy said the comments of Udhayanidhi were tantamount to hate speech and held that questioning it was a reaction. In her judgment, she said, "By overall consideration, the speech of the minister would clearly indicate it is totally against 80 per cent Hindus, which comes within the mischief of hate speech."
Further the judgment said: "This court with pain, records the prevailing situation that the person who initiates the hate speech are let scot-free, but the persons who reacted for the hate speech are facing the wrath of the law. The courts are also questioning the persons who reacted, but are not putting the law in motion against the person who initiated the hate speech. In the present case, no case has been filed against the minister for his hate speech in the State, but some cases have been filed in other States".
BJP leader K Annamalai, in his reaction, said the court has quashed the "vindictive and politically motivated FIR filed by the corrupt, anti-Hindu" DMK government against Amit Malviya.
The BJP leader said that the court categorically observed that questioning or responding to the hate speech delivered by Udhayanidhi Stalin, who openly called for the eradication of Sanatana Dharma, does not constitute a criminal offence and is an abuse of the process of law.
"Significantly, the court also noted the long-standing pattern of hostility towards Hinduism by the DMK and the Dravidar Kazhagam, tracing such attacks over the past century," Annamalai claimed.
"The court further recorded the glaring injustice wherein the originator of the hate speech was allowed to go scot-free with no cases filed against him in Tamil Nadu, while those who merely reacted or questioned it were subjected to the coercive machinery of the DMK government," Annamalai said.
"Justice has prevailed. Truth cannot be prosecuted, nor can DMK’s political vendetta extinguish civilisational faith. Will the DMK & others in the I N D I Alliance move an impeachment notice against Justice Srimathy too?" the BJP leader questioned.
Madurai, Jan 21 The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court has quashed an FIR registered against BJP leader Amit Malviya for alleged distortion of comments made by Deputy Chief Minsiter Udhayanidhi Stalin on 'Sanatana Dharma'.
Justice S Srimathy said the comments of Udhayanidhi were tantamount to hate speech and held that questioning it was a reaction.
BJP leader K Annamalai said the court has quashed the vindictive and politically motivated FIR filed by "the corrupt, anti-Hindu" DMK government against Amit Malviya.
