The Allahabad High Court has stayed the arrest of a man from Saharanpur who was booked for allegedly attempting to disrupt communal harmony through a Facebook post. The post in question referred to "government-recognised terrorists in saffron colour" and was cited in a First Information Report (FIR) registered in July 2025 under Section 353(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which pertains to statements conducing to public mischief. The petitioner claimed his social media account had been hacked and denied uploading the content.
According to Live Law, a bench comprising Justice Ajay Bhanot and Justice Divesh Chandra Samant granted interim protection to the petitioner, Mushahid Gada, after hearing submissions from both sides. The FIR alleged that the Facebook post had a strong probability of triggering a clash between two communities in Manohar Pur village.
The petitioner’s counsel argued that the accused did not upload the offending content and that his account was compromised. The counsel further submitted that the petitioner was willing to cooperate fully with the police investigation as coverage revealed.
Opposing the plea, the Additional Government Advocate (AGA) maintained that the FIR was based on a hateful social media post intended to stir up communal sentiments and cause disturbance in India. The AGA argued that the content of the post was inflammatory and warranted legal action as analysis showed.
The High Court, noting that the matter required consideration, issued a notice to the private respondent and directed the State to file a counter-affidavit within four weeks. The bench ordered that the arrest of the petitioner shall remain stayed until the next date of listing or until the filing of the police report under Section 173 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) or Section 193 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), whichever is earlier at the end of proceedings.
The Court stated, "If he fails to appear on the date fixed by the police, the interim protection order will stand vacated and it shall then be open to the police authorities to take coercive measures as per law against the petitioner."
The petitioner was directed to fully cooperate with the investigation and appear before the police authorities to give his statement. The Court made it clear that non-compliance with this direction would result in the vacation of the interim protection order as further details emerged.
The case, titled Mushahid Gada versus State of Uttar Pradesh and others, remains pending, with the next hearing scheduled after the State’s counter-affidavit is filed. The interim order provides the petitioner with protection from arrest, subject to his cooperation with the ongoing investigation as subsequent updates indicated.
Note: This article is produced using AI-assisted tools and is based on publicly available information. It has been reviewed by The Quint's editorial team before publishing.