SC Rebukes Cartoonist Over PM, RSS Post, Flags Abuse of Free Speech

The Supreme Court on Monday 14 July, 2025, while hearing the anticipatory bail plea of cartoonist Hemant Malviya, who has been booked for his objectionable social media posts related to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, RSS workers and Lord Shiva, said that the right to freedom of expression is being "abused" . The SC Rebukes Cartoonist Over PM, RSS Post, Flags Abuse of Free Speech.

SC Rebukes Cartoonist Over PM, RSS Post, Flags Abuse of Free Speech

A bench of Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Arvind Kumar was hearing an SLP filed by the cartoonist Hemant Malviya , a social media commentator challenging the Madhya Pradesh High Court order refusing to grant him anticipatory bail in a case related to a cartoon posted on facebook (social media).

Background of the case:

The case was registered based on a complaint by RSS worker and lawyer Vinay Joshi, who had alleged that Malviya had hurt Hindu religious sentiments and disturbed communal harmony by posting objectionable content on social media. The FIR mentions several posts, including a cartoon, comments on Lord Shiva and material related to PM Modi and RSS members .

After that the Hemant Malviya filed an Anticipatory Bail under section 482 BNSS , 2023 before the Madhya Pradesh High Court challenging the he had only posted a cartoon and cannot be held liable for comments posted on it by other users but the High Court denied to grant him anticipatory bail and held that the applicant ought to have exercised his discretion  while making the above cartoon, and he has clearly overstepped  the threshold of Freedom of Speech and expression , accordingly, the anticipatory bail is hereby rejected.

Malviya had approached the apex court after the Madhya Pradesh High Court rejected his  anticipatory bail plea on 3 July. He has been charged under several sections of the Indian Penal Code, including Section 196 (acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony), Section 299 (outraging religious feelings), Section 352 (intentional insult) and Section 67-A (publishing sexually explicit material online) of the IT Act.

Court's Reasoning

During the hearing, the bench asked Malviya's Counsel Vrinda Grover "Why do you do all this?" , Grover argued that the cartoon in question was made in 2021 during the Covid-19 pandemic and said, "It may be distasteful. I would like to say it is disgusting. Let me go to that extent. But is it a crime? My Lords have said, it may be objectionable but it is not a crime. I am just on the law. I am not trying to justify anything." He also agreed to remove the post. Justice Dhulia remarked, "Whatever we may do in this case, it is certainly a case that freedom of expression is being misused."

The Learned Additional Solicitor General KM Nataraj , representing the Madhya Pradesh government, told the court that such acts have been repeated. When Grover said there should be some maturity in the way the issue is handled, Nataraj replied, "It is not just a question of maturity. It is much more than that."

The learned Malviya's Counsel Grover further submitted that no law and order issue has arisen since the cartoon was published and questioned whether arrest and remand was necessary in such a case involving personal liberty.

The bench posted the matter for hearing on July 15. Grover requested interim protection for Malviya till the next hearing, to which the bench replied, "We will consider it tomorrow."

Malviya's lawyer had earlier told the high court that he had only posted a cartoon and cannot be held liable for comments posted on it by other users.

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