Chennai, Jan 21 (IANS) Former Tamil Nadu BJP chief, K. Annamalai, on Wednesday welcomed the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court quashing the criminal case registered against BJP national office-bearer Amit Malviya, describing the verdict as a strong reminder against the misuse of criminal law for political ends.

The High Court, in its order dated January 20, set aside the FIR registered by the Trichy City Crime Branch against Malviya in connection with a social media post related to remarks made by Tamil Nadu Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin on Sanatan Dharma.

The case stemmed from a complaint filed by Advocate Dinakaran, district organiser of the DMK Advocates’ Wing. The complaint alleged that a post shared by Malviya on the social media platform X had the potential to incite communal disharmony and disturb public peace.

The controversy traced back to a speech delivered in 2023 by Udhayanidhi Stalin at the ‘Sanatana Abolition Conference’ organised by the Tamil Nadu Progressive Writers and Artists Association.

Addressing the gathering as a special guest, the Minister drew a distinction between ideas that should merely be opposed and those that, according to him, ought to be eradicated.

In his speech, Udhayanidhi Stalin compared what he described as social evils to diseases such as dengue, malaria and coronavirus, stating that such diseases are not simply opposed but eradicated.

Extending the analogy, he remarked that Sanatan should also be eradicated rather than merely opposed, adding that the title of the conference was, therefore, apt.

A video clip of this speech was later shared by Amit Malviya on X. In his accompanying post, Malviya claimed that Udhayanidhi had compared Sanatan to deadly diseases and had effectively called for its eradication.

Malviya further alleged that such remarks amounted to a call for genocide against India’s population.

Based on the complaint, the Trichy City Crime Branch registered a case against Malviya under Sections 153 and 153A of the Indian Penal Code, which deal with promoting enmity and acts prejudicial to communal harmony.

Challenging the registration of the case, Amit Malviya approached the Madurai Bench of the High Court seeking its quashing.

After hearing the submissions, Justice Srimathi allowed the petition and ordered that the criminal proceedings initiated against Malviya be quashed, bringing an end to the case.

–IANS

aal/rad