HC reserves orders on Kamra plea, says no arrest till then | Mumbai News

Mumbai: In interim relief for comedian Kunal Kamra (36), who is in Tamil Nadu, the Bombay high court on Wednesday said until orders are passed on his plea for a stay of investigation, he shall not be arrested by Mumbai police.
The HC’s two-judge bench of Justices Sarang Kotwal and S M Modak heard extensive arguments until 6.40 pm, when they concluded and reserved orders for Kamra’s case. Kamra argued the FIR registered against him by Khar police over his show makes out no offence and the probe deserves to be stayed pending final disposal of his plea to quash the FIR itself.
The bench, in a holding order, said, “as agreed by public prosecutor Hiten Venegaonkar, summons were issued under Section 35 (3) of BNS which specifically refers to notice being issued for recording the statement of the accused where the arrest of the person is not required. In that background, the question of arresting (Kamra) doesn’t arise.” The bench added, “Till then, the petitioner shall not be arrested.”
Senior counsel Navroz Seervai, with advocate Ashwin Thool appearing for Kamra, said the FIR was “on the face of it motivated and malafide” and amounted to a “chilling effect” on free speech and as “rarest of rare” to merit a stay on probe. Seervai submitted that Kamra so far received around 500 death threats via messages, emails and calls from unknown persons.
Venegaonkar read out Kamra’s content to say the FIR made out a cognizable offence which police must probe, and at this stage, HC can’t intervene. He said free speech is governed by reasonable restrictions and cannot violate the dignity of any person. The public prosecutor said Kamra was not targeting any state decision but a former CM and present deputy CM in his individual capacity by making fun of his looks and his past.
Venegaonkar said utterances leading to a rift in different groups would include two political groups with lakhs of followers with separate ideologies. Seervai scoffed, saying it was “stretching” the meaning too far.
Kamra wanted the FIR lodged by MLA Murji Patel quashed and, until final judgment, the probe stayed. Patel’s lawyer, Brijesh Patel, said he had no instructions. HC directed him to file his appearance as his lawyer within a week.
Art and satire hold much value for a “meaningful human life,” said Seervai. He said Shiv Sena members vandalised the venue, and BMC partly demolished the studio the next day, as police stood by.
Seervai said Kamra’s show reflects his “irreverential and satirical style.” He added Kamra said it was in the public domain and exact words had been used by politicians then on the other side, including Ajit Pawar and Uddhav Thackeray, to describe Shinde as reported by the media. “Where was Murji Patel then? Why did he not file complaints?” asked Seervai.
Venegaonkar said who one chooses to file criminal complaints against and who is left out can’t be an argument in defence. Seervai said police were duty-bound to first conduct a preliminary inquiry. Besides, defamation needs to be filed as a private complaint first.