Supreme Court turns down petition seeking arrest of Jitendra Tyagi, Yati Narsinghanand

New Delhi, September 2

The Supreme Court on Friday turned down a petition seeking arrest of Jitendra Narayan Tyagi alias Wasim Rizvi and Yati Narsinghanand and a ban on Rizvi’s book, “Muhammad”.

“You are asking somebody to be arrested and criminally prosecuted under an Article 32 petition? If we proceed, then what happens to Lalita Kumari judgment (on registration of FIR)? Have you filed a complaint…These are not petitions which can be entertained under Article 32,”  a Bench led by Chief Justice of India UU Lalit said, refusing to entertain the Indian Muslim Shia Isna Ashari Jamaat’s petition that also sought directions to restrain the duo from making derogatory remarks against Islam and its prophet.

As the Bench wasn’t convinced, the petitioner’s counsel chose to withdraw the petition. The Bench, however, gave liberty to the petitioner to seek appropriate remedies in accordance with law.

The Supreme Court had on August 29 refused to extend the medical bail granted to Haridwar Dharma Sansad hate speech case accused. A Bench led by Justice Ajay Rastogi – which had on May 17 granted three-month interim bail to Tyagi – asked him to surrender by September 2 and said his plea for grant of the regular bail will be heard on September 9.

“There is no reason to give him relief. So many cases are pending against him. Ask him to surrender,” the top court had told Tyagi’s counsel.

While granting him interim bail in May, the top court had directed Tyagi to give an undertaking that he would not indulge in hate speech and will not give any statements on electronic, digital, or social media.

Tyagi had moved the Supreme Court after the Uttarakhand High Court dismissed his bail plea around two months ago.

The case against Tyagi and others was registered on a complaint of Nadeem Ali, a resident of Jwalapur Haridwar, at Haridwar Kotwali on January 2, 2022. Ali alleged that the Dharma Sansad was organised in Haridwar by Hindu sages from December 17 to 19 and in the garb of this event, the participants were instigated to wage a war against Muslims.