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Synopsis

The Supreme Court of India today refused to entertain a contempt petition filed against the Uttar Pradesh authorities for not taking steps against the 'Dharam Sansad' being organized between December 17 to 21 at Ghaziabad by Yati Narasinghanand.

"All matters cannot come to the apex court", CJI Sanjiv Khanna told Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing before court on behalf of petitioner Aruna Roy.

The CJI further directed Bhushan to approach the High Court saying that issues were coming from both sides.

ASG KM Nataraj, who appeared for the concerned authorities has been told to, "keep a track of what happens..the fact that we are not entertaining does not mean there should be a violation...".

Yati Narsinghanand, the head priest of Dasna Devi temple in Uttar Pradesh, is also an accused in a case for his alleged hate speeches against Muslims during the Haridwar “Dharam Sansad” that took place last month from December 17-19. Narsinghanand, has also been accused of alleged derogatory remarks against Muslim women. Allegedly, Narsinghanand was seen as saying that the Muslims have captured everything, that they have joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), that they have captured the RSS and for the service of Islam, their women can act as mistresses of anyone and that they (women) are their greatest strength.

In May 2022 Supreme Court had refused to issue guidelines for curbing hate speeches so that similar Dharam Sansads were not organized. This was in a plea alleging that the “incident of hate speeches at Delhi and Haridwar consisted of open calls for genocide of Muslims in order to achieve ethnic cleansing”.

Case Title: Aruna Roy & Ors vs. Shri Ajay Kumar Mishra