Don’t arrest Kamra: SC

Mumbai: Spelling relief, the Bombay High Court has granted interim protection against arrest to standup comedian Kunal Kamra till further orders in his plea to quash a Mumbai Police FIR on his ‘gaddar’ comments directed against Deputy CM and Shiv Sena President Eknath Shinde.

The order by Justice Sarang Kotwal and Justice Shriram Modak came after conclusion of arguments and a day before Kamra’s interim bail plea hearing is scheduled before the Madras High Court on April 17.

The division bench noted that since the prosecution had agreed that the summons to Kamra are under Sec. 35(3) which specifically states that arrest of the person is not required, the petitioner (Kamra) shall not be nabbed till orders on his plea.

Earlier on April 7, the Bombay HC had continued the interim protection granted to Kamra till April 16 (today), in tune with the Madras HC’s similar relief to the comedian till April 17 (tomorrow), in his plea for transit anticipatory bail against the Mumbai Police’s FIR.

Kamra’s counsel Navroz Seervai had forcefully argued that the comedy show clip fell within the Freedom of Speech under the Constitution Art. 19 (1)(a), and not within the exception to the freedom of speech.

Relying on the recent Supreme Court case involving Congress MP Imran Pratapgarhi versus the State of Gujarat on the issue of Freedom of Speech, Seervai contended that the FIR against Kamra was an attempt by the State (Maharashtra) at the behest of a political party (complainant Shiv Sena MLA Murji K. Patel), intended to harass an artist.

He referred to the haste with which the FIR was registered soon after (Patel’s) complaint on the night of March 23, the police did not apply their mind while lodging the FIR, and the person allegedly defamed (Shinde) did not file any complaint.

After the show and its violent fallout, Seervai said that Kamra received several death threats from the ruling Mahayuti ally Shiv Sena and despite that, the police insisted on his personal appearance for the investigations.