Delhi High Court refuses to quash FIR against DU Assistant Professor over X post on Shiv Linga

The Delhi High Court recently refused to quash a criminal case filed against an assistant professor at Delhi University (DU) over a controversial post made on X (formerly Twitter) regarding the 'Shiva Linga' claimed to have been found at the compound of Varanasi's Gyanvapi mosque [Dr. Ratan Lal vs State Government of NCT of Delhi & Anr.]..The post in question said, "Yadi yeh Shiv Ling hai to Lagta hai shayad Shiv ji ka bhi khatna kar diya gaya tha" (loose translation: If this is Shiv Linga, it seems that Shiva was also circumcised). Justice Chandra Dhari Singh observed that the assistant professor’s comment prima facie showed an intention to hurt religious sentiments and disturb public tranquility.“This Court is of the view that prima facie, the petitioner has created disturbance of the harmony of the society and this Court has also found that the said tweet/post were made with the intention-to hurt the sentiments of a large number of the society,” the Court said, while dismissing the assistant professor's plea to quash the case against him..The Court added that freedom of speech is not absolute.“No person being a Professor, Teacher, or an intellectual has the right to make such type of comments, tweets or posts as the freedom of speech and expression or any type of freedom is not absolute,” it said.Justice Singh also quoted from 'Shiv Puran, Vidhweshwar Samhita' to narrate the etymology and concept of Shiva Linga. The Court cited certain shlokas (verses) from the said scriptures and held that, “it is obvious that the act and remarks made by the petitioner are contrary to the beliefs and customs followed and practiced by the worshippers and believers of Lord Shiva/Shiva Linga.”The Court further opined that the social media post not only hurt religious sentiments of the complainant, but also promoted hatred, enmity and communal tensions among two different communities.“The act of the petitioner, by making posts on Twitter and Facebook, with a photo of the Shiva Linga with derogatory remarks not only shows that there is a visual representation in terms of Sections 153A and 295A, but also shows the deliberate and malicious intent on the part of the petitioner,” the Court added..The Court was dealing with a plea by Dr. Ratan Lal, an Assistant Professor of History at the Hindu College, Delhi University.In 2022, a first information report (FIR) was lodged against him with Delhi’s Cyber Police under Sections 153A and 295A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) over his tweet on the Shiva Linga reportedly found in Varanasi. The complainant said that Dr. Lal's tweet had hurt his religious sentiments as a Hindu. Within a few days of lodging FIR, the assistant professor was arrested, although he was granted bail a day after his arrest. He later faced difficulties in securing a visa for foreign travel and in career promotions on account of the pending criminal case, prompting him to move a plea before the High Court to quash the FIR. However, by its December 17 order, the High Court dismissed his petition. .Advocates Aditya Kumar Choudhary, Sandeep Pandey, Aditya Anand Singh and Anurag Yadav appeared for Dr. Ratan Lal. Additional Public Prosecutor Yudhvir Singh Chauhan appeared for the Delhi government. The complainant, Shiwail Bhalla, appeared in person..[Read Order]