New Delhi, July 21: 'Like father, like son' this phrase perfectly goes with Justice Chandrachud and his son, Dr. Abhinav Chandrachud. After Justice Chandrachud granted bail to the Hinduphobic 'fact checker' Mohammed Zubair, now his son contended before the Karnataka High Court that insulting Hindutva did not amount to insulting Hinduism.
He made this remark while appearing before the High Court in a case seeking the quashing of an FIR against a law student. The complaint alleged that some individuals were displaying a placard with "F*ck Hindutva" written on it and that it amounted to offences under sections 153-A and 295-A.
The petitioner law student was charged under sections 295-A (Deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings…) and 153-A (Promoting enmity between two different groups…) of the Indian Penal Code for allegedly holding an objectionable placard during an anti-CAA protest at Government Arts College, Bengaluru.
Arguing before the Court, Advocate Chandrachud said that Hindutva could be considered a philosophy, a way of life, or even a predominant ideology of a political party. Therefore according to him using insulting language against Hindutva was not an insult to religion but an insult to political philosophy.
Therefore, section 295-A could not be invoked. He contended that section 153-A also was not attractive as it required two communities to be involved. "No offense under sections 153-A and 295-A is made out even if the contents of the FIR are accepted in its entirety", he contended.