The bench permitted the Delhi police to file “a better affidavit”.With the Supreme Court asking it to have a relook at the affidavit that ruled out any hate speech at an event organised by the Hindu Yuva Vahini in Delhi in December last year, the Delhi Police has now told the top court that it has registered a case after examining a video of the event.
“It is submitted that all links given in the complaint and other material available in public domain were analysed. One video containing audio and video recording of the… programme was found uploaded on YouTube. After further minute verification of the material, FIR No. 0406 dated 04.05.2022 has been registered at police station Okhla Industrial Area, Southeast (Delhi) district for offences under section 153A, 295A, 298 and 34 of the IPC,” the Delhi Police said in an additional affidavit filed in court Friday.
The brief affidavit also states that “investigation will be carried out in accordance with law”.
Earlier, a petition had sought a probe into the ‘dharam sansad’ held in Haridwar as well as Delhi, in response to which the Delhi Police filed an initial affidavit ruling out hate speech. Taking up the affidavit on April 22, the Supreme Court asked if any senior police officer had applied their mind to it or had only reproduced the report of the investigation carried out by a sub-inspector of Okhla police station.
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“Some superior officer has seen it? Who has verified it? Has there been application of mind as to if this stand can be taken on affidavit before the court?” Justice A M Khanwilkar asked Additional Solicitor General K M Nataraj, who appeared for the Delhi Police. Nataraj responded that “we will have a relook and file a fresh affidavit”.
Following this, the bench permitted the Delhi police to file “a better affidavit”.
In its initial affidavit, police said that it had investigated the complaints about the Delhi event and that “no hate was expressed in the events at Delhi against group, community, ethnicity, religion or faith”.
Police said it had received three complaints alleging that open calls were made for genocide of Muslims with the object of achieving ethnic cleansing. The complaints also referred to a speech by Suresh Chavhanke, editor of Sudarshan News, and claimed that it contained instances of what can be termed hate speech.
“All the… complaints were consolidated and enquiry was initiated” on them, it said, adding: “After that deep enquiry was conducted, evaluation of video, etc, then the answering respondent did not find any substance in the video as per allegation levelled by the complainants. In the video clip of Delhi incident, there is no utterance against any particular section, community…,” the affidavit said.
It added that the police, “after carrying out preliminary enquiry on the aforesaid complaints, and after examining video link and attached video in respect of hate speech delivered at Delhi, found that no such words as mentioned by the complainant in his complaint have been used. There is no use of such words which mean or could be interpreted as ‘open calls for genocide of Muslims in order to ethnic cleansing or open call for murder of an entire community’ in the speech”.
Police further said that “findings of inquiry after visual and audio examination of evidence further disclose that speech did not contain any hate words against a particular community, and persons who gathered were there with the motive to save the ethics of their community” and that “in view thereof, the complaints were closed vide enquiry report dated 13.03.2022”.
The court will hear the matter again on May 9.
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