A court in Haridwar has acquitted Jitendra Tyagi, formerly known as Wasim Rizvi, in connection with a 2021 case of hate speech during the Hairdwar Dharam Sansad..According to The Indian Express, Chief Judicial Magistrate Avinash Srivastava acquitted Tyagi observing that, “For an offence under Section 153A of the IPC, it is not sufficient for just one individual to feel hurt. Nor is causing offence an essential ingredient of the offence under this section. While hurting religious sentiments through spoken words may be punishable under Section 298 IPC, it is essential that such words be uttered in the hearing or presence of the person allegedly offended — which is not the case here.”.Tyagi, ex-chairman of Uttar Pradesh Shia Central Waqf Board, had converted to Hinduism. On January 2, 2022, a first information report was lodged against Tyagi for making objectionable remarks against Islam and Prophet Muhammad during the Dharam Sansad held in Haridwar between December 17 and 19, 2021.As per report, the Court noted that the complainant himself admitted to giving the investigating officer video footage he had received on social media, which he had transferred from his phone to the pen drive in question.“Messages circulated on social media are generally viral in nature and meant for public consumption. Therefore, the video footage available on the complainant’s mobile cannot be considered authentic evidence under the category of electronic records. It also cannot be ruled out that the content shared with the complainant may have been tampered with by the sender,” the order stated.The Court also observed that, according to witness statements during cross-examination, "no religious tension arose following the speech."
A court in Haridwar has acquitted Jitendra Tyagi, formerly known as Wasim Rizvi, in connection with a 2021 case of hate speech during the Hairdwar Dharam Sansad..According to The Indian Express, Chief Judicial Magistrate Avinash Srivastava acquitted Tyagi observing that, “For an offence under Section 153A of the IPC, it is not sufficient for just one individual to feel hurt. Nor is causing offence an essential ingredient of the offence under this section. While hurting religious sentiments through spoken words may be punishable under Section 298 IPC, it is essential that such words be uttered in the hearing or presence of the person allegedly offended — which is not the case here.”.Tyagi, ex-chairman of Uttar Pradesh Shia Central Waqf Board, had converted to Hinduism. On January 2, 2022, a first information report was lodged against Tyagi for making objectionable remarks against Islam and Prophet Muhammad during the Dharam Sansad held in Haridwar between December 17 and 19, 2021.As per report, the Court noted that the complainant himself admitted to giving the investigating officer video footage he had received on social media, which he had transferred from his phone to the pen drive in question.“Messages circulated on social media are generally viral in nature and meant for public consumption. Therefore, the video footage available on the complainant’s mobile cannot be considered authentic evidence under the category of electronic records. It also cannot be ruled out that the content shared with the complainant may have been tampered with by the sender,” the order stated.The Court also observed that, according to witness statements during cross-examination, "no religious tension arose following the speech."
