Tension prevailed in Shahjahanpur’s Sadar Bazar area on Friday (September 12, 2025) night. This happened after a man had allegedly posted objectionable remarks against Prophet Muhammad and the Quran on social media. This prompted a large crowd to gather outside the police station and raise slogans. Superintendent of Police (SP) Rajesh Dwivedi told PTI that the accused had posted derogatory comments on Facebook. According to SP Rajesh Dwivedi, “Our social media monitoring team spotted the post, after which the police arrested the accused.” Mr Dwivedi added that late Friday night, members of the Muslim community surrounded the police station, and staged a protest.
What is the punishment in India for outraging the religious feelings?
Section 299 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, mentions deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs. According to this section, whoever, with deliberate and malicious intention of outraging the religious feelings of any class of citizens of India, by words, either spoken or written, or by signs or by visible representations or through electronic means or otherwise, insults or attempts to insult the religion or the religious beliefs of that class, shall be punished. According to Section 299 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, they shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to three years, or with fine, or with both.
This is a cognizable and a non-bailable offence. Writing objectionable remarks against any religion should be avoided since it can lead to a riot, thus endangering the lives of many people. Instead, people should focus on strengthening communal harmony in the society.
