The Supreme Court bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and M M Sundresh has directed that the petition filed by CPI(M) leader Brinda Karat, seeking the registration of an FIR against BJP leaders Anurag Thakur and Parvesh Verma for alleged hate speeches in 2020, be assigned to the bench headed by Justice K M Joseph, which is hearing similar cases.

During Monday's hearing, Justice Sanjiv Khanna asked the Counsel appearing for the petitioner if there was a case pending before the Supreme Court on similar issues. It should be noted that, while hearing a batch of petitions relating to hate speech incidents at Dharam Sansad events in October last year, a bench led by Justice KM Joseph ordered that suo motu police action be taken against hate speech.

The SLP was filed in response to the Delhi High Court's dismissal of the petitioner's Criminal Writ Petition against a trial court order rejecting their plea for the registration of FIRs against BJP leaders Anurag Thakur and Parvesh Verma for allegedly delivering hate speeches in 2020.
The Delhi High Court held that, while the writ petition was maintainable, it could not be heard due to the settled position of law and judicial rulings on the existence of an effective alternative remedy.

The Court held that in cases where an effective alternative remedy is available, it must be exhausted, and that High Court intervention should be limited to urgent cases in the interest of justice.

The petition refers to various speeches delivered by the two politicians along with the speech dated January 27, 2020 granted by Anurag Thakur at a rally shouting the slogan "desh ke gaddaron ko, goli maaron saalon ko".

According to the petition, the speech threatened to use force to remove protestors who were protesting at Shaheen Bagh in the aftermath of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), as well as to promote hatred and enmity against Muslim people by portraying them as invaders who would break into homes and rape and kill people.

Case Title: Brinda Karat And Anr. v. State of NCT of Delhi And Anr. 
Diary No. 35545/2022