The Gauhati Excessive Courtroom on Thursday (February 26) issued discover on a PIL petition and two linked instances looking for instructions to restrain Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma from making alleged hate speeches towards the minority communities within the state.
The PIL states that regardless of the presence of public movies of alleged hate speeches of CM Sarma, Assam Police has not filed a suo motu FIR. It claims that inaction towards CM fosters a “local weather of impunity” and a chilling impact.
The PIL filed by Assamese scholar Dr Hiren Gohain and two others seeks instructions to restrain CM Sarma from making alleged hate speeches and inciting civilians to take the legislation into their very own arms towards minority communities.
Earlier this month, the Supreme Courtroom had requested the petitioners who approached the apex courtroom looking for motion towards Sarma for alleged hate speech to method the Excessive Courtroom.
After listening to the matter at size, a division bench of Chief Justice Ashutosh Kumar and Justice Arun Dev Choudhury stated, “Let notices be issued to the Union of India, State of Assam, DGP and Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma”. The courtroom additionally issued discover on the prayer for interim aid.
Chief Justice Ashutosh Kumar additionally orally remarked that there was a ‘fissiparous tendency’ showing from the alleged statements learn out earlier than the courtroom
When the petitioners urged for an ad-interim order restraining the CM from making statements, the courtroom orally stated, “At this stage, let notices be issued first. Will probably be a traditional restraint whereas this petition is pending consideration. Discover for each the primary prayers and ad-interim prayers. We are going to maintain it after the Bihu holidays“.
The Courtroom additionally stated that issuing discover to the Bharatiya Janata Celebration (BJP) was not vital at this stage.
CM violated oath of workplace, secularism & fraternity
Showing for one of many petitioners’ senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi stated, “Simply see the consistency, continuity, and recurring nature of this particular person’s motion. He’s violating the oath of his workplace and each recognized canon of Article 14, 15, the phrases of preamble, Secularism and fraternity and provisions of BNS“.
Referring to the CM’s statements and movies on the alleged speech, Singhvi argued, “When somebody takes the oath of a public workplace, particularly the CM of the state, such situations are unacceptable. A repetitive sample may very well be seen“.
Singhvi referred to an alleged comment by Sarma made in 2023 in Chhattisgarh, arguing that the CM’s feedback on “love jihad” and “illegal spiritual conversion” had “pan-india implication”.
“CM invoked Mahatma Gandhi’s coverage of civil disobedience and non-cooperation whereas concentrating on a selected group within the state. I imagine Gandhi would flip in his grave if he heard this interpretation. We won’t neglect that he has taken the oath of workplace. I’m closing by saying that an FIR have to be registered, such speeches have to be stopped, and real motion have to be taken towards the CM,” Singhvi emphasised.
Derogatory Remarks made towards minority group calling them ‘Miya Muslim’
In the meantime, showing for Assam scholar Dr Hiren Gohain, senior advocate CU Singh submitted {that a} letter was written to the Excessive Courtroom’s Chief Justice relating to this case.
To this the Chief Justice orally stated, “Sure, I learn the letter and commented that the petitioners might method the suitable authority“.
Singh in the meantime stated, “I wish to be a part of Dr Singhvi in stating that these petitioners have approached the Gauhati Excessive Courtroom with nice anguish, as they really feel that the CM represents every citizen of the state, even the final particular person within the state…This can be a demeaning scenario for the state. The remarks denigrate everyone. Proper from 2023, the CM has been making remarks towards the ‘Miya-Muslims’. On eighth Feb 2024, he addressed the state meeting on ‘Mission Basundhara’ whereby he stated that those that had been forcibly transformed to Islam in the course of the Mughal interval can get the standing of indigenous individuals in the event that they return to their ‘authentic identification’“.
Submitting that “the Bangladesh difficulty is used as a canine whistle” Singh stated that grievance within the minds of individuals of Assam had been regarding ethnic and linguistic issued but it surely was by no means a non secular grievance.
He thereafter stated that the CM had made such remarks with regard to a welfare scheme. Singh additional submitted that in August 2024, the CM blamed a personal college in Meghalaya for the large flooding in Guwahati and is acknowledged to have termed it a “flood jihad”.
Singh, “He known as the College’s 3-domed gates “Mecca-like” and blamed such establishments for destroying the schooling system“.
Singh stated that the CM had additionally made a public assertion that “he would take sides, and will not let ‘Miya’ Muslims take over Assam”.
Singh stated, “...Now, CM has began making not simply hate speeches however incendiary remarks. He refers to Bengali migrant Muslims as ‘Miya’.In yet one more comment, CM Sarma stated that 4 to 5 lakh Miya voters can be deleted when the SIR of electoral rolls is performed in #Assam. He additionally insisted that his job was to make the Miya folks endure“.
Singh submitted that CM Sarma had stated that he had “instructed the BJP folks to maintain making complaints towards Miyas”. “…In a rickshaw, if the fare is Rs 5, give them Rs 4. Provided that they face troubles will they go away Assam…,” Singh added.
Referring to Supreme Courtroom’s Amish Devgan judgment, Singh submitted that the Apex Courtroom had stated that when hate speech is made by an influential persona, the police have an obligation to suo-motu lodge an FIR and never watch for a grievance to be made.
Singh stated that the petitioners search “peace” within the state, as they do not wish to see it go up in flames. Asking the courtroom to difficulty discover Singh stated, “We face a distressing scenario the place the pinnacle of state, who has an awesome accountability, is choosing and selecting between the residents. We residents have enormous expectations from the CM“.
Singh additional referred to Supreme Courtroom’s resolution in ‘Ghooskhor Pandit’ film case whereby Justice Ujjal Bhuyan had stated that public figures holding excessive constitutional places of work, comparable to ministers, should not goal any group on the premise of faith, caste, language or area, as it could violate the Structure.
CM cannot make statements inflicting legislation and order drawback
In the meantime senior advocate Meenakshi Arora showing for the petitioner a linked matter stated that when the previous US President Barack Obama had in 2023 stated that India might pull aside if the rights of the spiritual and ethnic minorities aren’t upheld, to this the CM had stated that India has many “Hussain Obamas”.
“As a CM of the state, who occupies the seat of energy, cannot make statements that create a law-and-order scenario. He stated in one among his statements that ‘Miya’ persons are to be blamed for the inflated costs of greens within the State.There’s a constant sample in his speeches that exhibits he’s denigrating a selected group. He made an announcement that Muslims may represent practically 40 per cent of the state’s inhabitants within the subsequent Census, however there isn’t any materials to again this declare,” Arora added.
Arora submitted that when the CM was requested a query by a Muslim reporter concerning the standing of motion towards hill-cutting in part of Assam, and he (CM) focused the reporter on the premise of his spiritual identification.
“CM asks folks to offer bother to Muslims; if this isn’t inciting, then what’s? He says that his job is to make ‘Miyas’ endure, and other people must also accomplish that,” she stated.
She stated that the CM’s assertion incites a selected particular person to behave violently towards a selected group.
“There have to be a route to lodge an FIR on this case. Within the meantime, the CM have to be directed to stop and desist from making such statements which might be opposite to the spirit of constitutional morality,” she added.
Background
For context the PIL plea additionally prays for the next reliefs:
* An unbiased SIT probe into alleged offences underneath S. 196, 197 & 353 BNS
* A fee chaired by a former HC Choose to watch the SIT investigation.
* A declaration that the CM violated his constitutional oath of workplace.
The PIL plea urges the Excessive Courtroom to step in instantly to dispel the notion that hate speech in Assam does not include “full impunity”. It seeks pressing motion to cease CM Sarma from committing additional offences underneath S. 196(Selling enmity between completely different teams on grounds of faith, race, fatherland, residence, language, and so forth., and doing acts prejudicial to upkeep of concord), 197(Imputations, assertions prejudicial to nationwide integration) & 353 (Statements conducing to public mischief) BNS.
The issues at the moment are listed in April.
Case title: DR. HIRENDRANATH GOHAIN AND 2 ORS Versus THE UNION OF INDIA AND 3 ORS and linked petition
PIL/14/2026, PIL/15/2026
Senior Advocate Chander Uday Singh appeared for Dr Hiren with Advocates Sauradeep Dey, Rupali Samuel, Yash S Vijay
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