The Karnataka High Court on Tuesday stayed for a period of four weeks a first information report (FIR) registered against former minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Dr CN Ashwath Narayan booked for his remarks against Chief Minister Siddaramaiah during a rally before the State Assembly elections.
Justice M Nagaprasanna opined that the offence of provocation with intent to cause riot was prima facie not made out.
“What merits consideration now is whether the facts would meet the ingredients of Section 153.. the result of the statement should be so provocative that it should result in rioting or is capable of resulting in rioting,” the court observed.
The Court further asked the State to respond to Narayan’s plea seeking seeking quashing of the FIR within four weeks.
The FIR was registered based on a complaint dated May 24 for Narayan’s remarks against Siddaramaiah during the election campaign in February 2023.
The BJP leader was booked for offences under Sections 506 (criminal intimidation) and 153 (provocation with intent to cause riot) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
During the hearing today, Senior Advocate Prabhuling Navadagi, appearing for Narayan, submitted that the complaint was made by one M Lakshmana, but he was not present where the remarks were purported to be made, nor was a video or audio recording of the same produced.
“It is his version of what happened. There has to be prima facie material, something further.“
The senior counsel added that once a non-cognizable report was registered on an earlier complaint, a second complaint could not be registered.
It was his stand that just because the government changed overnight, the Police changed its mind and a second complaint was registered for the same offence.
Challenging the FIR, Narayan stated that his ‘enthusiastic’ remarks were made during the election campaign to motivate his party workers.
“Narayan without the intention to cause any sort of injury (verbally or physically) to the then opposition leader in State, made the speech only with an intention to defeating another political rival in the elections and it was meant in a way of vanquishing an opponent by way of electoral poll,” the plea stated.
It was claimed that the complainant chose to act on the statement made in February within a few days of the new ruling party coming to power.
He also stated that the complainant was trying to cause disturbance by giving the political statement a ‘colour of enmity and hatred’ amongst the public.
Narayan further alleged that the complainant was only trying to capitalise on the electoral victory and get back at his political rivals.