Madhya Pradesh Cabinet Minister Kunwar Vijay Shah has moved Supreme Court against Madhya Pradesh High Court’s May 14 order which ordered registration of FIR against him for his remarks against Indian Army Officer Colonel Sofiya Qureshi who had briefed the media about Operation Sindoor against Pakistan.
Taking suo moto cognisance of the controversial statement, Madhya Pradesh High Court on Wednesday ordered police to register FIR against the minister. Counsel of Shah will mention the plea for urgent hearing today before the apex court.
On Wednesday, an FIR was registered against him under sections 152, 196(1)(b), and 197(1)(c) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) after the High Court order.
A division bench of the High Court had taken suo motu cognisance against him and directed the Director General of Police (DGP) to lodge an immediate FIR.
Office of Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, in a post on X, had said, “Following the order of the Madhya Pradesh High Court, the Chief Minister has given instructions to take action regarding the statement of Cabinet Minister Vijay Shah.”
A division bench of Justice Atul Sreedharan and Justice Anuradha Shukla heard the matter on Wednesday.
The Court said that if the FIR is not registered by Wednesday evening, the Court may contemplate proceeding against the Director General of Police of the State for contempt of the order.
“The statement made by Minister Vijay Shah prima facie has the propensity to cause disharmony and feelings of enmity or hatred or ill-will between the members of the Muslim faith and other persons who do not belong to the same religion,” the court observed as stated in the order copy.
The Court also directed the AG Office to transmit the order forthwith to the Office of the Director General of Police of the State and ensure that it is done.
The next hearing into the matter is scheduled for May 15 and the court has listed the matter on the top of the list.
The controversy arose after a video clip of Shah’s speech went viral on social media. In his clarification, Shah said his comments were taken out of context and were meant to praise Colonel Qureshi’s bravery.
Speaking to ANI over the row, the minister said, “My entire background is from the military. Many of my family members were martyred and were in the military… Colonel Sofiya Qureshi is above my real sister, who performed the national religion and took revenge on those people. She (Qureshi) is more important than my real sister. I had nothing in my mind; if something slipped out of the excitement and hurt someone, then I would like to apologise from the heart. Not once, but I apologise ten times.
“The minister further said, “I am a patriotic man, and people of every community worked for the nation. If something slipped out in anger and someone felt bad, then I would like to say that I am not a god; I am also a human being. I apologise ten times for it.” (ANI)
