The Supreme Court of India on Tuesday ordered Indore-based cartoonist Hemant Malviya to publish a public apology across all his social media platforms, including Facebook and Instagram, for an offensive post he made in 2021. The post, which was a cartoon, allegedly depicted the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in an “undignified” manner.
The court was hearing Malviya’s anticipatory bail plea in a case being investigated by the Madhya Pradesh police. While the Supreme Court had previously granted him protection from arrest last month, the case arose from a complaint filed in May by Vinay Joshi, a lawyer and RSS member. Joshi claimed that the cartoon was “offensive,” “obscene,” and “indecent,” hurting Hindu religious sentiments and damaging the RSS’s image.
A bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and NV Anjaria noted that Malviya had tendered a “whole hearted apology” in an affidavit dated August 16. The court expressed hope that the apology was sincere and granted him 10 days to publish it.
Malviya’s lawyer, Vrinda Grover, stated that the post was not intended to offend any organization or individual and offered to delete it from all platforms. However, the state, represented by Additional Solicitor General (ASG) KM Nataraj, objected, arguing that the post is a subject of an ongoing investigation and should not be deleted until the probe is complete. The court sided with the state on this point and directed that the post not be deleted.
The Madhya Pradesh Police had booked Malviya under several sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including 196 (acts detrimental to communal harmony), 299 (hurting religious feelings), and 352 (intentional insult with intent to provoke a breach of peace), as well as provisions of the Information Technology Act.
The court has scheduled the next hearing in 10 days to monitor the publication of the apology and issue further orders. Malviya’s anticipatory bail plea was dismissed by the Madhya Pradesh High Court on July 3, after which he approached the Supreme Court. The high court had observed that he “misused the freedom of speech and expression.”
Malviya has maintained that the original cartoon was from 2021 and the complaint was filed against reposts made by other people who added “objectionable words” to his work, for which he claimed he had no role. The Supreme Court had previously remarked that the cartoon was in “bad taste.”