The Maharashtra Police informed the Bombay High Court on Tuesday that the two FIRs registered against Hindutva leader Milind Ekbote from the Samast Hindu Aghadi for delivering hate speech are distinct and should not be clubbed and that they can exist simultaneously.
Ekbote's 2021 speech in Pune led to an FIR
According to the police, Ekbote delivered a speech at an event organised at Natubaug in Pune on December 19, 2021, to celebrate the killing of Afzal Khan by Maratha ruler Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. Afzal Khan was a general who served the Adil Shahi dynasty of Bijapur Sultanate in India.
Ekbote’s speech allegedly spread communal hatred, following which an FIR was registered against him at Khadak police station in Pune on the same day.
A second FIR was filed in Thane on the next day.
Both FIRs based on same facts, argues Ekbote's lawyer
His advocate Yashovardhan Deshmukh contended that that two FIRs were simply registered in two cities on different dates, but both were based on the same set of facts.
However, the division bench of Justices AS Gadkari and Sharmila Deshmukh noted that a two-page report was filed by a Special Investigation General of Police, stating that the two FIRs were "distant", as the second FIR also referred to an incident in Chattisgarh.
The court also sought an explanation from the prosecution since it was mentioned that the FIR referred to an incident in another state.
HC directs ADG to file affidavit in 4 weeks
The court also expressed dissatisfaction over the report submitted by a junior officer, as against the Additional Director General (ADG) of Police, Law and Order, as directed by an earlier order.
The HC has granted four weeks to the ADG to file an affidavit.
Ekbote had approached the HC seeking quashing of the two FIRs. The high court had earlier rejected his contentions. However, concerning the second FIR in Thane, the court directed the ADG to determine whether two FIRs can exist on the same issue.
