New Delhi: Nearly five years after Kazeem Ahmad Sherwani alleged he was abused and humiliated over his Muslim identity in Noida, the Uttar Pradesh government informed the Supreme Court on Monday it will invoke hate crime provisions in the case.
Additional Solicitor General K.M. Nataraj told Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta that Sections 153B (imputations prejudicial to national integration) and 295A (deliberate acts to outrage religious feelings) of the IPC would apply. The state will seek trial court approval within a week to add them.
This follows the court's two-week-old directive seeking clarification on hate crime sections for the July 4, 2021, incident, where the Delhi resident claimed men offered him a lift en route to Aligarh, then abused him and pulled his beard.
Sherwani approached the apex court in November 2021 over police inaction; Noida initially refused an FIR, registering one only in January 2023 under criminal intimidation and hurt provisions, claiming a loot motive.
Senior advocate Huzefa Ahmadi and advocate Shahrukh Alam pressed for compensation, which remains unresolved. The bench allowed pursuit through appropriate forums but kept the matter pending at Alam's request.
The court noted prosecution under 153B and 295A needs government sanction per CrPC Section 196, but police cannot skip FIR registration or investigation. It had earlier observed that pulling a Muslim man's beard—integral to his faith—clearly signals religious targeting, questioning the state's initial refusal despite no broader communal evidence.
UP also confirmed disciplinary action against officers for the delay.