A Delhi court on Wednesday refused to order police investigation into a complaint against Delhi Art Gallery from where it recently ordered seizure of two paintings by famous artist late MF Husain. .However, the Court decided to proceed on the complaint filed by advocate Amita Sachdeva who has claimed that the paintings hurt the sentiments of Hindus.The Court will now examine the accused persons to determine whether there is sufficient ground to proceed with the matter or not."This matter may be proceeded as a complaint case henceforth. Let notice be issued to proposed accused persons in terms of first proviso to section 223 BNSS for 12.02.2025," the Court ordered.Judicial Magistrate First Class Sahil Monga noted that all the facts and circumstances of the case are within the knowledge of the complainant and CCTV footage of Delhi Art Gallery, video recorder and the paintings in question have already been seized. Accordingly, the Court dismissed the application seeking directions for registration of FIR against the accused."It is settled law that U/s. 175(3) BNSS, Magistrate has power to direct the police to register a case and investigate the matter, but this power is to be exercised judiciously and not in a mechanical manner. In the matters where the complainant has in his/her possession all the evidence required to prove his/her allegations, there should be no need to pass an order U/s. 175 (3) BNSS," the Court said..Sachdeva had seen the paintings while on a visit to the gallery on December 4, 2024. She deemed them to be offensive and then lodged a complaint with the police.When she visited the gallery with the investigation officer on December 10, the paintings had allegedly been removed. She then approached the Court seeking directions for FIR against the art gallery and preservation of evidence. An action taken report by the police said that the paintings in question were displayed as part of an exhibition held in a private space. The paintings were only to display the original work of the artists, it added.Following a court order, the paintings were seized. However, the Police said commission of cognizable offence could not be ascertained..Senior Advocate Markand Adkar with Advocates Vikram Kumar, Yadavendra Saxena, Santanu Adkar, Ankush Mahajan and Abhinav Kumar represented complainant Amita Sachdeva, who appeared in person.[Read Order]
