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The Allahabad High Court on Friday rejected a plea by the Secretary of the Gareeb Nawaz Mosque and Mohammad Naeem (local resident) to quash the FIR lodged against them by the Uttar Pradesh police for speaking to The Wire for a video news report.

A Division Bench of Justices Ramesh Singh and Narendra Kumar Johari noted that it is allowing the petitioners to move an anticipatory bail in the matter but it cannot quash the proceedings at the moment.

The UP Police in June had registered an FIR against online news portal, The Wire for for allegedly spreading animosity in society and disturbing communal harmony over its video documentary on the demolition of a “mosque” by district administration. 

The FIR was registered by Barabanki Police station at 8:07 PM at the behest of the complaint made by Mahendra Singh against the news website and its two journalists who did a report on the Gareeb Nawaz Mosque demolition issue in Uttar Pradesh.

During the hearing, the Counsel for the applicants submitted that charges under 153A (sedition) and other connected charges were unsustainable.

In the present plea filed through advocate Saud Rais, it was contended that the allegations in the FIR is baseless and the life of petitioners is under threat because the police can arrest them anytime.

It was submitted that the FIR infringes upon their basic right of freedom of speech and expression guaranteed to every citizen under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution.

In this regard, reliance was place on Supreme Court's decision in Romesh Thappar v. State of Madras, in which the top court held that there can be no doubt that freedom speech includes freedom of propagation of ideas, and that freedom is ensured by "freedom of circulation"

The FIR has been registered under IPC sections 153 (wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot), 153-A (promoting enmity between different groups), 505 (1) (b) (with intent to cause, or which is likely to cause, fear or alarm to the public), 120-B (criminal conspiracy) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention).