A division bench led by Justice Sanjiv Khanna verbally remarked that Stalin had abused his rights under Articles 19(1)(a) (freedom of speech and expression) and 25 (freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion) of the Constitution by passing such remarks.
Stalin had sparked a furore last year by saying that Sanatana Dharma divides people in the name of caste and religion.
“You should have realised the consequences, you are a minister, not a layman,” the bench verbally remarked.
The bench was hearing a plea by Stalin to club multiple first information reports (FIRs) registered against him for his remarks.
At a conference organised by Tamil Nadu Progressive Writers Artists Association in Chennai in September last year, Stalin had said that a few things must not merely be opposed but should be “eradicated”.He had reportedly said, “Just like dengue, mosquitoes, malaria, or coronavirus need to be eradicated, we have to eradicate Sanatana” .Days later several individuals, including 14 retired high court judges, had written to the Supreme Court, urging it to take suo motu action against Stalin for his controversial comments.
Stalin later clarified that his comments on Sanatana Dharma were not against Hinduism or the Hindu way of life, but were merely a call for ending caste-based discriminatory practices. Appearing for Stalin, senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi sought clubbing of FIRs lodged in various states in light of judgments in cases of Arnab Goswami, Mohammed Zubair, Nupur Sharma and Amish Devgan.
