The Supreme Court on Friday quashed criminal proceedings initiated by Gujarat police against Congress MP Imran Pratapgarhi over a social media post with the poem 'Ae khoon ke pyase baat suno'.
A bench headed by Justice A.S. Oka said no offence is made out against Pratapgarhi, ruling that the police must first go through and understand the meaning of written or spoken words before lodging FIR in such cases.
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— Muhammad Bin Althaf (@Mohd_B_A) March 28, 2025
SC quashes FIR against Congress MP Imran Pratapgarhi ! @ShayarImran
He showed victory of Constitution of India and carried copy of Constitution!#ImranPratapgarhi pic.twitter.com/2KwAbDOv0t
"Constitution says reasonable restriction can be imposed on freedom of right to speech and expression but the reasonable restriction should not be unreasonable and fanciful to trample the rights of citizens,” the top court said in a detailed verdict.
The apex court emphasised that free expression of thoughts and views by individuals or a group of individuals is an integral part of a healthy civilized society. "Without freedom of expression of thoughts and views it is impossible to lead a dignified life guaranteed under article 21 of the Constitution. In a healthy democracy, the views of thoughts expressed by an individual or group of individuals must be countered by expressing another point of view. Even if a large number of persons dislike the views expressed by another, the right of a person to express the views must be respected and protected. Literature including poetry, dramas, films, satire art make the life of human beings more meaningful," the top court noted.
Elaborating on the duties of the courts in such cases, the bench said, "The courts are duty bound to uphold and enforce the fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution of India. Sometimes, we the judges may not like spoken or written words but still, it is our duty to uphold the fundamental rights under Article 19(1). We judges are also under an obligation to uphold the Constitution and respective ideals."
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"It is the duty of the court to step in and to protect the fundamental rights. Particularly the constitutional courts must be at the forefront to zealously protect the top fundamental rights of the citizens. It is the bounden duty of the court to ensure that the Constitution and ideals of the Constitution are not trampled upon," the bench said, adding the endeavour of the court should be always to protect and promote fundamental rights including the freedom of speech and expression which is the most important right citizens can have in a liberal constitutional democracy.
According to the FIR, Pratapgarhi had allegedly posted a 46-second video clip of the poem on December 29 on his X handle, with the lyrics "Ae khoon ke pyase baat suno..." playing in the background.
A Jamnagar resident had filed a complaint against the Congress MP, alleging that the poem was "provocative, detrimental to national integrity, and hurt religious sentiments."
