The Bombay High Court has quashed a 2010 FIR registered against actor Shekhar Suman and comedian Bharti Singh over alleged objectionable remarks made during a television comedy programme aired on Sony Entertainment Television (SET)
The FIR, registered at Pydhonie Police Station, stemmed from a complaint alleging that expressions such as “Ya Allah! Rasgulla! Dahi Bhalla!” used in an episode of ‘Comedy Circus Ka Jadoo’ had hurt religious sentiments. The complaint had invoked Section 295-A read with Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
In its order pronounced on April 29, the High Court held that the comedy show was a “family entertainment programme” and the expressions used were part of a scripted humorous act, without any deliberate or malicious intent to outrage religious feelings.
The court observed that Section 295-A requires the presence of “deliberate and malicious intention” to insult religious beliefs, and stated that such essential ingredients were absent in the present case.
“It is asserted that the said programme was not intended to cause offence or hurt the sentiments of any religion, caste, community, or section of society,” the court said, adding that stray expressions in a performance cannot be read in isolation.
“It is further submitted that prior to September 2010, the programme “Comedy Circus Ka Jadoo” was telecast under the broader title “Comedy Circus”, which has been aired on SET since the year 2007 under various formats such as “Comedy Circus Ke Superstar”, “Comedy Circus Teen Ka Tadka”, and others, with certain modifications in presentation. The essential format of the programme consists of pairs or groups of performers, generally comprising two or three artists, who perform acts across episodes, which are then evaluated by judges appointed for that purpose,” as per the order.
It was informed by the concerned police officer that the complaint lodged by Mohd. Imran Dadani Rasabi alleged that a programme telecast on 20 November 2010 at about 9 pm contained certain expressions, including the words “Ya Allah! Rasgulla! Dahi Bhalla!”, which were perceived to have offended the religious sentiments of members of the Muslim community. Based on such a complaint, the matter was forwarded to Pydhonie Police Station, which resulted in the registration of the impugned FIR.
The bench further noted that terms like “Rasgulla” and “Dahi Bhalla” are commonly known food items without any religious connotation, and their use in a rhyming comedic context could not reasonably be interpreted as inciting religious animosity.
The court also observed that there was no material to establish shared criminal intent under Section 34 of the IPC, and held that continuation of proceedings would amount to abuse of process of law.
The petitioners had additionally argued that a prior sanction under Section 196 of the Code of Criminal Procedure was mandatory for prosecution under Section 295-A, which had not been obtained in this case.
Accepting the submissions, the High Court quashed the FIR and all consequential proceedings, holding that the criminal case lacked legal foundation.
The petitions were filed by Shekhar Suman and Bharti Singh challenging the FIR arising from Episode 18 of Comedy Circus Ka Jadoo, which aired in November 2010 on SET.
