No Hate Speech At Delhi Meet, "Public Interest Not Endangered": Police

The speakers at the "Dharm Sansad" or religious assembly in Delhi on December 19 made no hate speech against the Muslim community, the Delhi Police has said.

"In-depth investigation of the video and other material found that no hate speech was given against any community. Therefore, after investigation and evaluation of the purported video clip, it was concluded that the alleged speech contained no hate speech against a particular community," the Delhi Police informed the Supreme Court.

Based on the investigations, all the complaints filed regarding the event are closed, it further said.

In its affidavit filed before the Supreme Court, the Delhi Police also questioned the petitioners for moving the top court without first approaching the police.

"The allegations made by the petitioners against the police authorities that police authorities are hand in glove with perpetrators of communal hate are baseless and imaginary. The case is based on videotape evidence. There is hardly any scope on the part of investigation agencies to tamper with the evidence or hamper the investigation in any manner," it said.

Referring to Supreme Court orders on Freedom of Expression, the Delhi Police said that the petitioner "is trying to draw an incorrect and absurd inference by isolated passages disregarding the main theme and its message".

"We must practice tolerance to the views of others. Intolerance is as much dangerous to democracy as to the person himself. Petitioner is trying to draw an incorrect and absurd inference by isolated passages disregarding the main theme and its message. Supreme Court has repeatedly said that freedom of expression must be allowed unless community interest is endangered. In this case, the public interest is not endangered," it said.

On January 12, the Uttarakhand government, Central government and Delhi Police had been ordered by the Supreme Court to reply to a petition on the "Dharma Sansad" hate speech case

The court was hearing a petition by former judge of Patna High Court Justice Anjana Prakash and journalist Qurban Ali

The plea stated that between December 17 and 19, 2021, at two separate events organised in Delhi (by the Hindu Yuva Vahini) and Haridwar (by Yati Narsinghanand), hate speeches were made, consisting of open calls for genocide of Muslims in order to achieve ethnic cleansing.

The plea stated that "no  action  whatsoever  has  been  taken  by the  Delhi  Police  in  relation  with  the  event  held  in  Delhi  despite  the  fact that  open  calls  for  genocide,  that  are  available  on  the  internet,  were  made therein."

Yesterday the Supreme Court directed the Uttarakhand government to file a status report by April 22 on action taken with regard to Haridwar Dharam Sansad hate speech.