The Allahabad High Court has once again extended the stay on the arrest of Alt News co-founder Mohammed Zubair until March 3 in connection with an FIR related to his alleged post on 'X' (formerly Twitter) regarding Yati Narsinghanand's 'derogatory' speech.

A bench comprising Justice Siddhartha Varma and Justice Yogendra Kumar Srivastava extended the relief after the state's counsel requested an adjournment. The matter was heard today following its previous adjournment on February 24, as the hearing remained inconclusive on February 19.

In previous hearings, the government, represented by Additional Advocate General Manish Goyal, argued before the High Court that Zubair had attempted to incite the public by creating a narrative through his posts on 'X.' He also raised concerns about the timing of Zubair’s posts, asserting that the fact-checker had exacerbated the situation.

On the other hand, Senior Counsel Advocate Dilip Kumar, representing Zubair, has argued before the Division Bench that his posts were made in fulfillment of his professional duty as a fact-checker and do not constitute any offense under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita or the Indian Penal Code.

One of the key arguments presented by Zubair's counsel is that by posting on 'X,' his client was exercising his right to free speech by referencing Yati Narsinghanand's alleged controversial speech and highlighting his conduct. He further emphasized that Zubair was not the only one to do so, as several news articles and social media accounts had also reported on the same issue.

The complaint was lodged by an associate of controversial priest Yati Narsinghanand. Zubair has approached the High Court challenging the FIR, which was later amended to include the offence under Section 152 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) [Act endangering the sovereignty, unity, and integrity of India].

He also submitted that no content of his posts was beyond his right to speech and expression and that he was merely asking the police authorities as to what action is contemplated against the maker of the alleged 'derogatory' speech pursuant to the lodging of the FIR.

Zubair contends that his October 3 post, which featured a series of videos of Yati Narsinghanand’s allegedly inflammatory remarks about Prophet Mohammad, was intended to highlight Narsinghanand’s provocative statements and urge law enforcement to take strict action against him. He later shared other tweets showcasing the priest’s various controversial speeches. However, the complainant, Udita Tyagi, has accused Zubair of deliberately sharing Yati’s old video clips to incite violence among Muslims. She further claims that his tweets led to violent protests at Dasna Devi Mandir in Ghaziabad.