New Delhi: Seventy-six Supreme Court Lawyers have written to Chief Justice of India NV Ramana expressing concern over the hate speech conclave and similar events organised by right-wing between 17 and 19 November in Haridwar and Delhi. They have urged the CJI to take suo moto cognizance in the hate crimes.
In Haridwar, the event was organised by Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati, head priest of a temple in Ghaziabad, who already has multiple cases lodged against him. A similar event was organised in Delhi by Hindu Yuva Vahini, another right-wing group.
In both the events, hate speeches including open calls for genocide of Muslims in order to achieve ethnic cleansing were made triggering a massive backlash from several political leaders in the opposition.
Now, the SC lawyers too have expressed concern over the events and have urged the CJI to take suo moto cognisance of the same.
"...events and the speeches delivered during the same are not mere hate speeches but amount to an open call for the murder of an entire community. The said speeches thus, pose a grave threat not just to the unity and integrity of our country but also endanger the lives of millions of Muslim citizens," reads the letter dated December 26.
The signatories of the letter include some eminent names like former Patna High Court judge Anjana Prakash, Dushyant Dave, Prashant Bhushan, Vrinda Grover, Meenakshi Arora, and Salman Khurshid.
The lawyers have urged the CJI to direct that action be taken against the guilty persons under Sections 120B, 121A, 153A, 153B, 295A and 298 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860.
"It is also pointed out that the recent speeches are a part of a series of similar speeches that we have come across in the past. It may be noted that no effective steps have been taken under the provisions of 153, 153A, 153B, 295A, 504, 506, 120B, 34 of IPC in respect of the earlier hate speeches. Thus, urgent judicial intervention is required to prevent such events that seem to have become the order of the day. We have also been informed that in this regard a few Petitions under Article 32 of the Constitution of India are also pending for consideration before the Hon'ble Supreme Court," the letter adds.
It concludes: "With hope for CJI to take prompt action in his capacity as the head of the judicial wing of the State and knowing his commitment to both the independence of Judiciary as also the constitutional values that are fundamental to the functioning of a multicultural nation such as ours."
Read: Priyanka Gandhi slams Haridwar 'hate speech' conclave, demands strict action
