Nuh incident: SC Directs Authorities to Ensure No Hate Speech and No Violence
2 August, 2023 | Anamika Singh Parihar
Supreme Court instructs authorities to prevent hate speech, violence, and property damage during national capital protest rallies.
On Wednesday, the Supreme Court gave instructions to the relevant authorities to make sure that no hate speech is aimed at any community, and that no violence or property damage occurs during any protest rallies held in the national capital amid Nuh incident.
The Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) rallies were not put on hold by the Apex court. The decision was made during the hearing of an intervening application that was submitted in the case by a bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and SVN Bhatti. The VHP is arranging the protest gatherings in response to the violence in Nuh. Regarding the prohibition on hate speech, the supreme court ordered the relevant agencies to follow its October 21, 2022, directives.
The state and law enforcement agencies were asked by the court to make sure that there was no hate speech directed at any community, violence, or property damage. In order to uphold law and order, tee top court has ordered the deployment of extra police or paramilitary personnel.
The Apex court has also mandated that authorities make sure that CCTV cameras or video recordings are used in all sensitive areas where necessary. Preserving the video recordings was another point the apex court emphasized.
The Delhi, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh governments were also served with notice by the court, and August 4 was set aside for the case. As everything was going on, Additional Solicitor General SV Raju made an appearance for Centre and requested more time to respond to the new application.
The top court was informed by senior advocate CU Singh that 23 rallies are planned. The apex court stated that authorities ought to respond when necessary because they are aware of the circumstances. The court ruled that maintaining peace and order is a matter of policing that needs to be addressed.
The person who submitted the application was Shaheen Abdulla. Through advocates Sumita Hazarika and Rashmi Singh, the application was submitted. The petitioner informed the court that the applicant had learned that the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) intended to hold protests in Delhi and Noida to express their opposition to the communal violence that had occurred in Haryana following the regrettable violence that erupted in Nuh and Gurgaon.
Around the Delhi-Haryana border, Noida in Uttar Pradesh, Manesar, Haryana, and 23 Delhi localities—Karol Bagh, Patel Nagar, Lajpat Nagar, Mayur Vihar, Mukherjee Nagar, Narela, Moti Nagar, Tilak Nagar, Nangloi, Ambedkar Nagar, Najafgarh, etc.—are among those where rallies are scheduled for August 2.
According to the applicant, these types of rallies, which openly call for violence and the killing of people, demonize entire communities and will undoubtedly cause communal strife and unfathomable levels of violence across the nation. Their impact is not restricted to the areas where communal tensions are currently being experienced.
According to the motion, a very reasonable fear of community persecution has emerged in light of the exceedingly perilous situation that now exists in the aforementioned places, and the top court needs to give this fear immediate attention.
The application additionally aimed to provide suitable directives for the removal of any videos, posts, programs, etc. related to the events that have occurred in Nuh and Gurgaon, Haryana, which disseminate false information and provoke discord among communities on social media platforms.