Use of "Gomatha" for beef preparation in cookery show likely to hurt religious feelings: Kerala HC passes strictures against Rehana Fathima

Use of the term "Gomatha" as a synonym for meat in a cookery show is likely to wound the religious feelings of lakhs of Hindus who worship cow as God, the Kerala High Court observed on Monday passing strictures against activist Rehana Fathima for the same. .Fathima had uploaded a video of a cookery show on social media captioned "Gomatha Ularthu" in which while narrating the recipe and preparation, she was seen repeatedly referring to the meat used as "Gomatha." ."There cannot be any dispute that the term "Gomatha" as is commonly understood is with reference to holy or sacred cow. Scriptures quoted by the complainant show that since the Vedic period, cow is revered as holy as deities, in India. If it is so believed by several lakhs of Hindus throughout the country, definitely, the use of the term Gomatha as a synonym for meat used in a cookery show, prima facie, is likely to wound the religious feelings of those believers," the court held..A single-judge Bench of Justice Sunil Thomas held that this act of Fathima was in violation of a bail condition imposed on her by the High Court in 2018 in another case relating to publication of derogatory materials about Lord Ayyappa of Sabarimala..In that case, the court had, while granting bail to Fathima, directed that she should not through print, electronic or visual media make, disseminate, share or forward any comment which has the propensity to affect religious sentiments of any community. .The complainant in that case filed the present application before Kerala High Court seeking recall of the order granting bail on the ground that the contentious video uploaded by her on social media was in violation of the bail condition. It was contended by him that Fathima had repeatedly used the term "Gomatha" intentionally to hurt the religious feelings of Hindus who consider cow as sacred. .The court agreed with the petitioner that the use of the word "Gomatha" was "ill-motivated and purposefully made". ."Uploading of such a highly objectionable video for public viewing may affect the fundamental right of the devotees," the court observed..It said that there was sufficient reason to cancel the bail on this ground but refrained from resorting to such step. Instead, it ordered Fathima not to use visual or electronic media to publish, share, transmit or disseminate any material or comments..The Court also ordered the removal of the video made by Fathima from social media titled "Gomatha Ularthu". .The court further directed Fathima to report before the concerned jurisdictional police station on every Mondays and Saturdays between 9 am and 10 am for a period of 3 months. .Fathima has been in the eye of the storm in the recent past after she attempted to enter the Sabarimala temple in 2018. This came after the Supreme Court had struck down a law prohibiting entry of women in the hilltop shrine in Kerala's Pathanamthitta district.She had to abandon her journey following massive protests by a mob of around 200 people, who had blocked her entry to the sacred shrine. Later she had put up a Facebook post dressed as an Ayyappa devotee leading to a case against her for hurting religious sentiments. .Recently, she raked up controversy again by uploading a video titled "Body art and politics" on YouTube showing her children painting on her semi-nude body..This led to registration of a case against her for offences under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012, and Information Technology (IT) Act, 2000.The Supreme Court and Kerala High Court denied her anticipatory bail in the case. .[Read Order].Follow Bar and Bench channel on WhatsAppDownload the Bar and Bench Mobile app for instant access to the latest legal news.