Final report on 2021 hate speech 'almost ready': Police tells SC

New Delhi: The Supreme Court was informed on Monday by the Delhi Police that its final report on alleged 2021 hate speech made at a religious conclave is "almost ready", IANS reported.

A bench headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud and comprising Justices PS Narasimha and JB Pardiwala directed the Delhi Police to inform it about the preventive steps taken against the accused in the case and provided three weeks for the same.

Submitting that the final report is nearly ready, Additional Solicitor General K.M. Nataraj, who appears for the Delhi Police, said, "It has been sent for vetting, and we will be filing the final report in the shortest time."

Representing the petitioner Tushar Gandhi, Advocate Shadan Farasat had contented that Delhi Police should clarify certain additional aspects and pointed out that as per the police affidavit, they have fixed some date in March for collecting the voice sample of Sudarshan News chairman cum managing director and editor-in-chief Suresh Chavhanke.

He said the same should be done fast since it should not take long.

Delhi Police said in an affidavit that Delhi BJP spokesperson Vikram Bidhuri, a participant in the religious conclave, has been examined. Sudarshan News editor-in-chief Suresh Chavhanke was also examined, and "he was bound down u/s 41A CrPC", the affidavit said.

Further, it said that the hate speech video had been scrutinised, and the transcript had been prepared.

It said, "Forensic Science Laboratory, Delhi, has fixed March 17 for the recording of a voice sample of Suresh Chavanke. Thereafter his specimen voice recording will be compared with the video/audio downloaded from YouTube...effort is being made to obtain the details of the video of the speech made during the event and uploaded on YouTube through the process of MLAT. That investigation of the case is being conducted fairly and without any bias."

Delhi Police filed the affidavit after the SC issued an order on January 13, which directed the investigating officer to place on record the steps to pursue the investigation since the incident took place on December 19, 2021.

The police have requested Google Inc to trace the login-logout IP addresses from where the YouTube video has been uploaded.

The affidavit said, "That in response to notice u/s 91 Cr.P.C., a reply dated November 18, 2022, was received via email from Google, LLC, Legal Investigations Support, informing that no records from the Google account holders, specified in the request, have been found."

Then the police told the court that it had interrogated the Hindu Yuva Vahini Delhi chief Rajiv Kumar, who had booked the auditorium, General Secretary Sachin Vasisht, who organised the event, and Ashutosh Sharma, who attended the meeting and uploaded the video on YouTube in the channel named as 'Hishant Media', along some others."

The affidavit continued, Some other participants who had attended the event have been identified and are yet to be examined."

"A draft 'final report' has been prepared and was sent to the prosecution branch for scrutiny. However, some points have been raised by the public prosecutor and investigation on those points is being conducted, "added the affidavit."