SC Stays Proceedings Against Congress MP Imran Pratapgarhi In FIR Over ‘Ae Khoon Ke Pyase Baat Suno’ Clip

The Supreme Court stayed proceedings against Congress MP Imran Pratapgarhi for allegedly posting a provocative video. The FIR was filed under charges of promoting enmity and hurting religious sentiments.

File Photo of Congress MP and poet Imran Pratapgarhi

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The Supreme Court on Tuesday stayed proceedings against Congress MP and poet Imran Pratapgarhi, who was booked in Jamnagar, Gujarat, for allegedly posting an edited video featuring a provocative song with the poem “Ae khoon ke pyase baat suno”. A bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan issued notice to the Gujarat government and complainant Kishanbhai Deepakbhai Nanda on Pratapgarhi’s appeal challenging the Gujarat High Court's refusal to quash the FIR.  

The FIR, registered by the City A-Division Police Station in Jamnagar, was filed on January 3 after Pratapgarhi attended a mass marriage event and uploaded a 46-second video clip on social media. The video showed him being showered with flower petals as he waved to the crowd, with a song playing in the background. According to the FIR, the lyrics of the song were provocative, detrimental to national unity, and hurt religious sentiments, news agency PTI reported.

The Congress leader, who serves as the national chairman of the party's minority cell, was booked under Sections 196 (promoting enmity between different groups on religious, racial, or other grounds) and 197 (assertions prejudicial to national integration) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, among other charges.  

During the hearing, the Supreme Court granted interim relief to Pratapgarhi, directing that no further steps be taken in connection with the FIR until further orders. "Issue notice returnable on 10th February… In the meanwhile, no further steps shall be taken in any manner on the basis of the FIR," the bench stated, as reported by Live Law.  

Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal, representing Pratapgarhi, criticised the Gujarat High Court's decision to dismiss the petition without issuing notice. He argued, “What are we coming to and where are we going to? In a matter like this, I need your lordships to say something. The order was passed on the first day itself even without notice.”  

Gujarat High Court Refusal To Quash FIR Against  Congress MP Imran Pratapgarhi

On January 17, the Gujarat High Court refused to quash the FIR, stating that the investigation was still in its early stages and that Pratapgarhi had not cooperated with the probe. The High Court observed that the poem featured in the video, “Ae khoon ke pyase baat suno”, allegedly contained references to the throne, and responses to the post indicated a potential disturbance in social harmony.  

“Looking to the tenor of the poem, it certainly indicates something about the throne. The responses received to the said post by other persons also indicate that the message was posted in a manner which certainly creates disturbance in social harmony. It is expected from any citizen of India that he should behave in a manner where communal harmony or social harmony should not be disturbed, and the petitioner, who is a Member of Parliament, is expected to behave in a more restricted manner as he is expected to know more about the repercussions of such posts,” the High Court stated, as per Live Law.  

The High Court also noted that Pratapgarhi had not responded to notices issued on January 4 and 15, which required his presence on January 11 and 22. It stressed that further investigation was necessary, referring to Supreme Court precedents that courts should not quash FIRs at the initial stage.  

The Supreme Court will next hear the matter on February 10.