No Coercive Steps – PB&HR HC

 On Wednesday, the Punjab & Haryana High Court ordered the Punjab Police not to take any coercive action against director Farah Khan, actress Raveena Tandon, writer Abbas Aziz Dala, comedian Bharti Singh, and Frames Production in relation to a FIR filed against them for allegedly offending religious sentiments in a web series titled Backbenchers distributed by Flipkart.

These directives were issued in response to a petition to quash a 295A IPC FIR.

According to the FIR, the accused offended the religious sensibilities of Christians by comparing the word Hallelujah to a vulgar word and by treating the word with contempt.

Advocate Abhinav Sood, representing the petitioners, argued that the FIR fails to identify the elements of the offence under section 295A of the Indian Penal Code.

Mr. Sood also asserted that the complainant's allegations are broad and ambiguous, and that there is an ulterior motive to impose criminal liability on the petitioners.

The attorney cited Bhagwati Charan Shukla vs. Provincial Government and Ramji Lal vs. the State of UP to argue that the FIR contains false information.

The Bench of Justice Karamjit Singh issued a notice of motion for December 5, 2022 and ordered that no coercive measures be taken against the accused until that date.

D.D:- 1 june, 2022

Raveena Tandon & Ors V/s. State of Punjab & Ors