Plea in SC seeks quashing of FIRs for anti-Modi posters; cites SC's order on free speech

Seeking quashing of FIRs against 24 people for anti-Modi posters in Delhi, advocate Pradeep Kumar Yadav on Monday, moved the Supreme Court citing 'freedom of speech'. The plea seeks contempt proceedings against police officials involved in filing the FIR as the SC had stated that to 'not clamp down dissenting citizens'. Delhi police have arrested 25 people for putting up posters questioning Centre's vaccine exports.

Plea in SC seeks to quash FIRs on anti-Modi posters

Incidentally, on April 30, an SC-bench comprising of Justices DY Chandrachud, L Nageswara Rao and Ravindra Bhat ruled that there should be a free flow of information and voices of citizens should be heard. The apex court ruled that there should not be any presumption that grievances raised on the internet by citizens are false. "We don't want any clampdown of information. We will treat it as a contempt of court if such grievances are considered for action," Justice Chandrachud said.

AAP owns to pasting posters

Earlier on Sunday, AAP had put up posters in many parts of the city criticising Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the shortage of COVID-19 vaccine, and said that its several workers were arrested and hundreds were being "harassed" by Delhi Police. Senior AAP leader Durgesh Pathak said the police action will not deter the party and it will put up similar posters across the city and the country on a campaign mode. Meanwhile, Congress leaders too have condemned the arrests, changing their twitter profile to the poster to read "Modiji humare bachhon ki vaccine videsh kyun bhej diya (PM why did you send vaccines meant for our children to foreign countries), daring police to arrest them too.

25 arrested over anti-Modi posters in Delhi

On Saturday, Delhi Police has registered 17 FIRs and arrested 25 people for allegedly pasting posters critical of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in connection with the vaccination drive against COVID-19, officials said. The posters reading "Modiji humare bachon ki vaccine videsh kyu bhej diya (PM why did you send vaccines of our children to foreign countries?)" were pasted in several parts of the city, they said.  More than 800 posters and banners were recovered across Delhi. The arrests include an auto-rickshaw driver, printer, sales agent etc, as per reports. The FIRs were registered under sections 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) of the Indian Penal Code and other relevant sections including section 3 of the Prevention of Defacement of Property Act across various districts of the Delhi Police, the officials said.  One of the arrested claimed that he was given Rs 500 to paste these posters and police are trying to nab more based on  CCTV footage of the incidents.