The Madhya Pradesh High Court has granted bail to two men arrested last month for allegedly promoting enmity through an Instagram reel expressing support for Iran amid the ongoing West Asia conflict, Bar & Bench reported on April 14.The accused, Wasim Khan and Yousuf Mehafooz, were taken into custody on March 8, following a complaint lodged by BrajeshChavariya. They were booked under Section 196(1)(a) of BNS for allegedly promoting enmity between different groups.
Asper the complaint, the accused appeared in an Instagram reel in which they, with others, voiced support for Iran, raising slogans that were interpreted by the complainant as provocative.
In its order dated April 9, Justice Ramkumar Choubeysaid the content of the reel did not constitute promotion of enmity. The Court noted that the statements merely reflected support for a foreign country and could not be construed as inciting hatred between communities within India.
“The material placed in the case diary shows that the offence has been registered against the applicants only on the basis of the Instagram reel… none of the content can be said to be promoting enmity between different groups… rather it is only showing a protest in favour of foreign country Iran,” the Bench stated.The Court granted bail to both accused.
Advocates Zeeshan Siddiqui and SharikAkeel Farooqui appeared for the accused, while Amit Pandey represented the State.