A writ petition has been filed in the Supreme Court demanding action against alleged instances of hate speeches against Muslims in the country. Islamic organisation Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind and religious activist Maulana Syed Mahmood Asad Madani have filed the petition at the apex court.
The petition alleges that there has been an increase in alleged hate speeches against Prophet Muhammad call for violence against Muslims in the country in recent years, and included some instances of such alleged hate speeches from 2018. The petitioners say that no action has been taken against anyone for such intances.
The petition mentions the recent controversial remarks made by Yati Narasinghanand Saraswati, alleged anti-Muslim slogans made at a rally in Jantar Mantar in August this year, the ongoing protests against weekly Friday Namaz on public grounds in Gurugram, protests in Tripura against attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh, and other some speeches and remarks as examples of hate speech against Muslims in the country.
The plea also alleges that around 100 Muslims were arrested in Uttar Pradesh for protesting against the speech of Yati Narasinghanand Saraswati. The petitioners alleged that no action has been taken against the alleged hate speeches made in the ‘Dharm Sansad’ in Haridwar. They have also alleged that the law enforcement agencies are succumbing to non-state actors and are failing to protect the rights of the minorities.
“The above facts simply go on to demonstrate that through provocative and derogatory speeches of Indian citizenry, a religious community is attacked in order to compel them to abandon their religious practices. It is not a matter to be left to the administrative process in the country without holding them accountable. A considered judicial intervention of the Constitutional Court, by invoking under public law remedy, is required considering the present circumstances,” the plea said.
The petition further alleged that the derogatory speeches against Muslims have resulted in violence and even killing of Muslims, and accused the police of failing to act against anti-Muslim speeches. “Hate speech feeds into a system of political and social discrimination and has a cumulative effect on the dignity of a group/community and its members”, the petition said.
The petition makes three main demands, a report from govt of India on action taken against hate speeches against Muslims, particularly targeting Prophet Mohammad; the Constitution of an independent committee to compile all cases of hate speech in the country; and Court-monitored investigation and prosecution of hate crimes.
