The Karnataka High Court on Friday quashed two hate speech cases filed against BJP leader and former Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, who was booked for allegedly promoting enmity between religious groups during a protest against the Waqf Board and the Congress-led state government.

The cases stemmed from remarks made by Bommai at a BJP rally in November 2024, where he accused the Waqf Board of encroaching on farmers’ and temples’ properties. Among the statements cited was, “If a stone is thrown in Savanur, wherever it falls, it is Waqf land.”

Shiggaon police had registered the cases under Section 196(1)(a) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, which pertains to promoting enmity between different groups on religious or other grounds. Bommai challenged the cases through two petitions, terming the complaints frivolous and politically motivated.

Justice SR Krishna Kumar allowed both petitions and quashed the cases, observing that the allegations were “vague, bald, omnibus, and laconic.” The Court further said that continuing the proceedings would amount to an “abuse of process of law,” Bar and Bench reported.

The Court clarified that this relief is limited to Bommai and does not apply to others named in the FIR.

Bommai was represented by Senior Advocate Prabhuling K Navadgi, with the petitions filed by advocate Shivaparasad Shantanagoudar. The state was represented by Additional Special Public Prosecutor BN Jagadeesha, who argued that video evidence prima facie suggested that Bommai had committed the offence.

However, the court, after reviewing the complaint and relevant legal precedents, held that the content lacked the necessary ingredients to sustain charges under the said provision.

– Ends