Snehashish roy
The Bombay High Court has quashed a 2010 FIR filed against actors Shekhar Suman and Bharti Singh over a controversial line used in a television comedy show, ruling that the act did not carry any malicious intent to hurt religious sentiments.
The case stemmed from an episode of the comedy show Comedy Circus Ka Jadoo, aired on Sony Entertainment Television, in which the phrase “Ya Allah! Rasgulla! Dahi Bhalla!” was used as part of a comic performance. A complaint was subsequently filed at Mumbai’s Pydhonie Police Station, alleging that the dialogue offended religious sentiments, invoking Section 295A of the Indian Penal Code.
After years of legal proceedings, the High Court, in its order dated April 29, held that the essential ingredients required to establish an offence under Section 295A were absent. The bench observed that the law mandates “deliberate and malicious intention” to insult religious beliefs, which was not evident in this case.
The court noted that the expressions in question were used in a comedic context and were part of a scripted performance intended for entertainment. It emphasised that words such as “rasgulla” and “dahi bhalla” are common food items with no inherent religious connotation, and their use in a humorous setting could not reasonably be interpreted as promoting religious animosity.
In its observations, the court also cautioned against the casual invocation of criminal law against artists. It stated that merely because a section of viewers may feel offended, it does not automatically constitute a criminal offence unless there is clear evidence of intent to target religious sentiments.
The bench further highlighted that the show was a “family entertainment programme” and had been running for several years in different formats. It underscored that performers and judges on such shows operate within scripted frameworks designed to evoke humour, not to provoke or insult any community.
Another key point raised during the proceedings was the absence of prior sanction required under the law for prosecuting offences related to communal disharmony. The court noted that this procedural lapse further weakened the case against the actors.
The FIR had been filed by a complainant who alleged that the dialogue, aired in November 2010, hurt the sentiments of the Muslim community. However, the High Court concluded that the complaint lacked sufficient material to establish a deliberate attempt to insult religion, and that continuing the proceedings would amount to an abuse of the legal process.
With these observations, the court quashed the FIR and all related proceedings against the actors, bringing an end to a legal dispute that had been pending for over a decade.
Neither Shekhar Suman nor Bharti Singh has publicly reacted to the court’s decision so far.