Allahabad HC refuses to quash FIR against Neha Singh Rathore over Pahalgam post
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Allahabad: The Allahabad High Court has dismissed a plea by Bhojpuri singer Neha Singh Rathore seeking to quash a first information report filed against her for social media posts about the deadly April 22 attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir.
A division bench of Justices Rajesh Singh Chauhan and Syed Qamar Hasan Rizvi delivered the order on Friday, observing that Rathore had allegedly referred to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a derogatory manner in her posts.
The court held that the allegations against her prima facie disclosed a cognisable offence, thereby justifying a police investigation. The bench also noted that the timing of her posts, immediately following the Pahalgam attack, was significant.
Rathore has been directed to appear before the investigating officer on September 26 and cooperate with the inquiry until the police submit their report.
The FIR was lodged in late April at Hazratganj police station in Lucknow under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for sedition and the Information Technology Act. The case arose after Rathore posted a video alleging that the Pahalgam attack reflected an intelligence and security failure by the BJP-led Union government.
In the same video, she further claimed that Modi would seek electoral gains in Bihar by invoking the Pahalgam attack, similar to the 2019 Pulwama terror attack that killed 40 CRPF personnel.
Challenging the FIR, Rathore approached the court seeking its quashing. Her counsel argued that she was entitled to express her views under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution, which guarantees freedom of speech and expression, and that no state authority could infringe upon this fundamental right.
However, the bench rejected this argument, noting that while Article 19 guarantees freedom of speech, it is subject to reasonable restrictions necessary to maintain public order, morality, and decency. The court observed that Rathore’s remarks directly named the prime minister in an allegedly derogatory and disrespectful manner, while also accusing the BJP of instigating conflict with Pakistan for political gain.
“Name of the prime minister of India has been used in a derogatory and disrespectful manner,” the court said, according to Bar and Bench.
The bench further stated, “In such comments, the petitioner has used a religious angle and the Bihar election angle, accusing the prime minister by name and alleging that the BJP government is sacrificing the lives of thousands of soldiers for its vested interest, pushing the country towards conflict with a neighbouring nation.”