Why in news
The Supreme court asked why a poem by Congress MP Imran Pratapgarhi, which talks about enduring injustice with love, led to a criminal case against him for promoting enmity based on caste and religion.
Right to free speech
The poem references non-violence, a path followed by Mahatma Gandhi, and speaks about suffering injustice with love, not hatred.
Solicitor-General Tushar Mehta, representing Gujarat, dismissed the poem as “cheap” and disagreed with comparing it to Gandhi’s principles.
The court questioned whether police fully understood the fundamental right to free speech, especially 75 years after the Constitution was adopted.
Justice Oka expressed concern that the police didn’t try to understand the meaning of the poem before registering the FIR, and emphasized the importance of respecting free speech.
Mehta argued that the poem could be interpreted in many ways, and suggested that asking police to interpret art might be too difficult.
The FIR was based on a complaint about an edited video of Pratapgarhi with the poem in the background, which was seen as provocative and potentially hurting national unity and religious feelings
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